Walter's Fortune
by McSgwizzle
Summary: When Walter reunites with a childhood friend, they become smitten. But, Kermit and the gang worry about it getting in the way of a huge Muppet position they want him to take on, since he is the youngest and a qualified leader. This is a story of Walter facing his problems of the past, presence, and the future, and how his Muppet family will help him cope.
1. Chapter 1

The sunrise woke Walter up. Well, that and the racket of the train running up against the tracks. The young boy rolled onto his back and rubbed his eyes, remembering what happened. The Muppets were on their way back to Los Angeles. After the whole run through with Constantine, they not only needed to re-plan their world tour, but also needed time to rest. But, while most Muppets planned to stick around L.A. and hang out, Walter had different plans.

After hearing what had happened, Gary and Mary called Walter, to make sure everything was okay. Walter explained that Constantine had been caught and put into jail where he belongs. Everyone was safe, but it was a close call. Especially after nearly losing Miss Piggy, and possibly Kermit too.

Relieved, Gary invited his brother to come visit their hometown, Smalltown. After all, Walter did have a lot of time to spare. Walter was pretty happy to be going. He wouldn't just get to see Gary and Mary, but maybe also hang out with some of his old friends he grew up with. They could hang out at the retro diner they use to go to after school on Friday's. Walter was pretty excited. After all this chaos, he wouldn't mind putting his feet up, and listening to the quiet evening sounds of the suburban town.

Walter rolled himself out of his bed, and went to open the blinds. The sun exposure blinded him for a second, but then his eyes adjusted. He looked out to see the large city of L.A. in the vast distance. He still had time to wake up a bit, and get ready.

He went to his trunk and pulled out a long sleeve light grey button down shirt, some black jeans, and a pair of black converse. When he was changed, he rolled up his sleeves to his elbows and kept his shirt untucked. He looked in the mirror, feeling good. He was changing his style a bit. Though he was part of the Muppets now, he was still in his early twenties, making him the young adult of the group. The public eye really started to take a liking to Walter, so he wanted to freshen up his style a bit. And honestly, he was really enjoying it.

He messed around with his hair a bit. Trying to make it look less like he just got out of bed, and more well-kept. If there was one thing Walter liked to make sure was looking good, it was his hair. He didn't leave in the morning without doing it. Walter had nice hair. Not to toot his own horn or anything, but he did get a few glances and whispers from some ladies in the past few cities while on their tour. Not just because he was becoming more famous, but also with his wits, humour, fresh new style, and handsome features, it was definitely catching some girls' attention. What else could Walter say? He really felt on top of the world right now.

Before Walter could finish messing around with his hair, there was a giant knock at his door, making him jump a little bit.

"Walter! Open up! You really need to see this!" One voice said.

"Open! Open!" Another said.

"Come on, we don't have all day!" A third finished.

Walter stopped playing with his hair, and went to go answer. When he opened the door to his train compartment, Fozzie, Animal, and Gonzo stood there.

"Ha, nice hair." Gonzo laughed at Walter's messy bed head.

"Hey, I just got up." Walter said, running his hand over his head.

"Look what's in the morning paper!" Fozzie exclaimed, shoving the newspaper in Walter's face.

Walter took the paper from the bear and read carefully. It read; _Muppet stars become Muppet heroes. The troupe put the most wanted criminal back in hostility._ Underneath the article was a picture of everyone in London, where the final battle had happened, and a picture next to it of Constantine behind bars.

"Wow, they're calling us heroes?" Walter said, astonished by the headlines.

"Yeah, one day we're putting on shows, and the next we're catching villains!" Gonzo said.

"Villains! Villains!" Animal excitedly agreed.

Walter continued to look at the paper, not really sure how to react.

"You okay, Walter?" Fozzie asked.

"Yeah, I am." Walter reassured the trio, "but, maybe we shouldn't get too ahead of ourselves."

"What do you mean?"

"Well sure, we stopped him. But he nearly destroyed the Muppets." Walter explained. "I think we need to be more careful with who we trust, from now on."

"He's right." A voice agreed.

The four other Muppets turned to see Kermit walking towards them, holding his coffee mug.

"It was a close call, guys." Kermit said, "we have to be cautious."

"But Kermit, how are we suppose to know if someone is evil?" Fozzie asked.

"I'm not sure..." Kermit began, "but, I think we need some type of security. Someone who can do an overview of anyone we hire."

Walter nodded in agreement. It's funny how he always seemed to be on equal grounds with their leader. I guess Walter would make a better Muppet then he thought, after all.

Kermit then tried to avoid the seriousness he brought. He turned towards Walter.

"When does your bus leave?" He asked him, taking a sip of coffee.

"Later, tonight." Walter responded, "around seven."

"Oh, so you'll get there early." Fozzie tried to conclude.

Walter looked at the comedian with disbelief. "Smalltown is in Idaho." he tried to explain, "It's more than a 13 hour drive, Fozzie."

"Oh, I thought you said 13 minutes."

"Argh..." Animal shook his head, annoyed.

"You really wanna spend 13 hours on a bus?" Gonzo asked, Kermit also a bit surprised. "Or at least take a plane, maybe travel by map?"

"I'm kind of use to long drives." Walter shrugged. "I'll fly back home, though."

No one noticed, but Kermit smiled a bit when Walter said "home." He was happy that their young newcomer was starting to recognize them more as a family, rather than just his co-workers.

"Okay well, I'll see you guys when we stop." Kermit then said, "I have a lot of documents to fill out, after all that chaos."

"Are we pressing charges?" Gonzo asked.

"You bet we are." Kermit laughed. "I'll see you guys." He said, leaving.

After Kermit left, the other three said bye and went their ways, too.

Walter of course, closed his door and went back to messing with his hair. He wouldn't have a lot of time, though. He needed to pack up, so that he could continue to pack up for his trip, later.

* * *

Walter jiggled his keys into his apartment door. Yes, HIS apartment door. Since all the Muppets got back together and Walter had joined, they all had to move to L.A. However, they were all currently living separately in their own apartments and homes. They loved being around each other everyday, but were still getting use to sleeping under the same roof every night, together. It was also difficult to find a house, or mansion that was big enough to fit all of them, but still let each of them have their own personal space. So until then, they decided to have their own places. It would probably be like that for a while.

Walter didn't mind. He saw them everyday, either way. Also, because of his boost in his finances after becoming a Muppet, he was able to afford a nicer L.A. style flat. One master bedroom, bathroom, a nice living area, kitchen. It had a very modern apartment decor style. At first, it was a bit overwhelming for Walter, since he came from a small town, with very country-like houses. But, he then started to take a liking to it.

His favourite part was probably the huge window view, looking over the neighbourhood. It was beautiful during the day, stunning at night. Walter could look out for hours. But, there was no time to waste. The bus won't wait for him.

His door unlocked, and he entered his apartment. Walter turned on the lights, and took in his surroundings. It was only one of the few times he'd been there. He bought it as soon as he'd signed as an official Muppet, was offered his first pay, and put it with the rest of his savings. Soon after, they went on tour, so he hadn't spent that much time, there. His main furniture was in place, but there were still a few boxes everywhere. But, he had a bus to catch. Guess it would have to wait until he got back.

Walter threw his keys aside into the key bowl, on the small table near his door. He sighed as he closed the door with his foot, back faced against it. He was stressed. Not sure if it was from the whole Europe madness, or that he had to start packing if he wanted to catch the bus, but he was stressed. All he knew, was that he really needed this trip to his home town to unwind.

The young Muppet pulled his trunk to his room, and began to unpack, slowly. He knew he was in a rush, but he was exhausted. As happy as he was this morning, he couldn't ignore that he'd been having trouble sleeping the past few nights. Probably because he, besides Animal, knew that there was something wrong with their leader. And he was right. He was so right, that his senses had to keep him up at night.

When Walter was done, he pulled out a smaller suitcase from his closet, since he'd only be in Smalltown for a while. He started to toss in some fresh clothes, and other essentials. He made sure he had what he needed. He wouldn't need his passport, since he'd be travelling within the U.S.

Walter had spent so much time prepping, he'd lost track of time. It was 6:25. He needed to catch a cab within the next five minutes, if he was going to catch that bus.

He grabbed his stuff, ran out the door, and locked it behind him.

Once arrived at the station, Walter gave the cab driver a tip, and ran. Getting the cab was easy, sure. It was the traffic that was bad. Even L.A., the hotspot of California, had it's problems.

It was 6:56, Walter had just made it. He got on and settled in his seat, extremely tired but relieved. He laid his head back, and felt like he was ready to fall into a deep sleep. Until, his phone buzzed.

He took his smart phone out of his pocket, and saw that he had got a text from Kermit.

It read:

 _Tell your brother we all say hi._

Walter smiled, feeling good inside. Though it was taking time getting use to his childhood heroes as his family, they sure were trying to make a good effort to do so.

He texted back to the frog:

 _Thanks, I'll see you guys in a week._

Walter then put his phone away, put up his hood of his red zip up hoodie, rolled over in his chair, and drifted off to sleep.

 **I know the first part was pretty short, but I hope you enjoyed! Make sure to come back!**


	2. Chapter 2

"Hello passengers, this is your driver speaking. We will be arriving in Smalltown, Idaho, shortly."

Walter took his headphones out, and looked at the beautiful landscape outside his window. They were just on the outskirts of Smalltown. They passed by a few cornfields, and Farmer Graham's farm. He remembers going there many times as a kid, with his brother and friends.

Soon after, the bus passed the welcome sign to Smalltown. The population meter went up, as it passed. Walter put his headphones away, and began to organize his stuff.

"Hope you had a good drive." The attendant said, as Walter left.

"I did, thank you." He responded, getting off the bus. Walter took a look at the beautiful view around him. The bus stop was right in front of Smalltown Park. A park that Walter remembers all too well, growing up near it. All of it he remembers being a child in. This town was his entire childhood, after all. And now look at him, he was living in Los Angeles. Who could have imagined that happening?

Walter walked down the side walk, already seeing some familiar faces of people he knew around town. Many glancing his way, now recognizing him for his fame. Walter crossed the street to the other side, passing by some familiar shops.

"Well, well! If it isn't Mr. big shot!" A gruff, deep man voice said. Walter turned to see a man with a white moustache and messy apron, standing in the doorway of his shop.

"Hey, Mack! How's the butcher shop business?" Walter said, stopping to chat with the older man.

"Ah, same old. I tell ya, I'm starting to get to old for slaughtering meat. Soon my son will have to take over. But forget about me, how's life in Hollywood?" Mack asked.

"To be honest, it's great! But, I'm still getting use to it. It's a lot different than the suburban life, here."

"Well, no kidding it ain't, boy! What the heck is a star like you coming back 'ere for?"

"I have a while off, so I'm coming to see my brother, and old friends. I gotta go, they're waiting. See ya later, Mack!" Walter said, running off with his suitcase in hand.

"See ya later, boy!" Mack responded, waving. "Those Hollywood kids, always busy."

Walter continued to walk his way to his and Gary's house. Well, now it was Gary and Mary's house. After getting engaged, Mary quickly sold her house and moved in with Gary, now that Walter was away. Their wedding wasn't for a while, but they decided that moving in together right away, worked. Their house was also a lot bigger, which would come in handy if Gary and Mary were to ever start a family.

Walter made his way down his street. It was quiet. After all, it was 8:30 in the morning on a Saturday. People were probably sleeping in. When he got to his old house, he turned onto the path way, and went up to the door. He stood on the new _Welcome Home_ mat and knocked.

Moments later, the door opened up. Gary stood there, in his pjs and night robe, drinking coffee.

"Wow, thanks for dressing up for me." Walter laughed at his older brother.

"Come on, we just got up." Gary said back. He smiled at him. "Welcome home."

"Good to be back." Walter said, coming in. Walter looked at his surroundings, he could already see a few changes. There was bound to be a few, since Mary moved in. To start, the door mat was new. Ever since Walter and Gary had moved out of their parent's house, they have never owned a door mat. The house also included some decorative, pretty things, including the flower pots that were right outside. But, hey. They were going to be married soon, so Walter had nothing to argue about. He's forgotten what its like to be in a relationship. His last serious girlfriend was in college, and he dated on and off a few times afterwards.

Walter and Gary walked to the kitchen, where Mary sat in her pjs and robe, too. She drank her coffee, and read the newspaper. When she saw the boys come in, she put the paper down.

"Walter, you're here! How was the bus ride?" She asked her soon to be brother-in-law.

"It was pretty good. I probably wouldn't know though, I slept most of the time." Walter said, sitting at the kitchen counter.

"Well yeah, it's an overnight trip and you're probably exhausted after all that Europe madness." Gary said, standing by his fiancee.

"Oh yeah, what's gonna happen with the Muppet tour?" Mary asked, giving Walter a mug of coffee.

"We're re-planning it." He responded, taking a sip of coffee. "Besides, since Constantine was tricking us the whole time, we kind of have no choice. Those weren't even real shows that we did."

"When's it gonna happen?"

"Not for a while. Since it was cancelled and we got home, we've been asked to schedule a lot of shows around the U.S., including talk shows and performances. So, the tour won't happen for a while, but we've got a lot to look forward to right now."

"Sorry that the first tour was a bust, buddy." Gary said.

"It's fine, I'm just glad everyone is safe." Walter took another sip of coffee. "Kermit said he wanted to hire security, though."

"That's a good plan, especially for travelling stars." Mary advised.

Walter nodded, and kept drinking his coffee.

"Oh by the way, they all say hi." The boy said, remembering Kermit's text from last night.

Gary and Mary smiled, feeling glad to feel partially incorporated in their Muppet family.

"So, I'm not sure if he got in contact with you, but Zach and Parker were hoping to meet up with you later." Gary said.

"Yeah, they told me." Walter said, all of a sudden feeling excited. "We're probably gonna head to the lake. It feels like I haven't been there in ages. Are you guys coming?"

"Well, we have some catering stuff to go over for the wedding, but we were hoping you'd come out to dinner with us and someone else, later." Mary said, giving Walter a funny smile.

Walter arched an eyebrow. "Who's this someone?"

Gary and Mary exchanged a look, smiling. They looked back at Walter.

"Lily." Gary said, still smiling. Walter put his mug down, and looked at the two with surprise.

"Lily?" Walter asked. "As in Lily, our friend from growing up?"

"Of course, who else?" Mary said, still smiling sort of creepily. Walter was suspicious of the two. Why were they acting so weird?

"Wow," said Walter. "I haven't seen her since she left for college in New York. Is she still doing musical theatre?"

"Guess you'll have to find out later, tonight." Gary smirked. Walter looked at him weirdly.

"I don't know what you two are up to, but I'm gonna find out." Walter said, putting his mug in the sink. He then took his suitcase and went to the guest bedroom.

* * *

Walter couldn't stop thinking about why Gary and Mary were being weird, on the topic of Lily. Walter and Lily were definitely close friends when they were growing up. Heck, they've known each other since they were five years old, when Lily and her family moved in across the street.

Maybe he needed some outside opinions. Walter was meeting up with two of his other childhood friends, at the lake. They were going to canoe over to the middle, and fish. There was Zach, who had the form of a humanoid puppet like Walter. He had pure blonde, swoopy side fringe, unkept hair. And he was pail. Parker was also like a humanoid puppet, except he had pure black, spiky hair, and tanned skin.

After telling his two friends about his Muppet experience, since they asked and asked, he told them about Gary and Mary's behaviour. How they began to act weird when they brought up Lily. How they kept smiling at him and were anticipating him for seeing her, later that night.

"They're trying to set you up!" Parker said, launching his fishing hook out.

"They're totally trying to set you up!" Zach agreed, reeling his rod in.

"What?" Walter said. "I've barely seen you guys for half an hour, and you're already acting as crazy as you did in high school."

"The only reason we're like that, is because you and Lily so had a thing for each other, growing up!" Zach said, looking at Walter.

Walter's face flushed pure red. That wasn't true, was it? No, it couldn't be.

"I don't know what you guys are talking about..." Walter mumbled, embarrassed.

"Well, we can't speak for Lily, we'd have to ask the girls if she's ever said anything. But, come on! You had a thing for Lily, and if you see her tonight, I'm sure you still will." Zach said, nudging Walter playfully.

Walter thought about, did Lily use to be into him? But more importantly, did he use to be in to Lily? Walter shook his head, trying to get rid of the thought.

"What does it matter?" Walter said, "even if there was something, she lives in New York, and I'm in L.A. That would never work!"

"The last I heard, she's planning to take her career somewhere else in the country." Parker said. "Maybe she'll be closer to where you are."

"And so what if she is?" Walter said, still denying everything. "Even if I did have a thing for her a few years ago, it would have ended as soon as she left for college. I'm not interested, now. End of story."

"Okay, whatever you say bro." Zach laughed.

"Can we talk about something else?" Walter said, "how's life in Atlanta?" He asked Zach.

"Pretty good." Zach responded. "I just got promoted to being Sous Chef in my restaurant. That's one step away from becoming Head Chef, boys!"

"Hey, congrats!" Walter said. "Who would have thought the kid who use to start food fights in our school cafeteria, is now one of the best chefs in Georgia."

"You know sometimes I wonder if you became a chef, because you like to cook, you like to eat, or because you like to meet ladies who hang out at your restaurant bar on Saturday nights." Parker wondered.

"I became a chef for all three of those reasons, my man." Zach laughed.

"Oh, speaking of job opportunities, I'm moving to Boise!" Parker said.

Walter looked towards his other friend. "You're moving up state?"

"Yup," Parker said, happily. "My real estate office is being moved their, and they're offering me a better job with some of the heads of our firm!"

"Parker, that's great!" Walter smiled.

"Look at us, guys." Zach said, reeling in his fishing rod. "Who would have thought that three weird boys from a little town, would make it big? I'm the Sous Chef at a four star restaurant, Parker is a successful Real Estate Agent, and Walter is a shinning L.A. Muppet Star! We did it, weirdos!"

The three friends laughed, and continued to chat on the boat. As good of a time as Walter was having with his old friends, his mind was still set on later that night. Mainly on Lily.

* * *

Meanwhile in L.A., Kermit was frantic. Him and a few of the muppets were in the studios, organizing a few things. Even though everyone was taking a holiday, some of them couldn't help but not sit still.

Kermit followed Miss Piggy to the back entrance of the studio. "Piggy, are you sure you want to go to The Grove, by yourself? Maybe I, or someone can-"

"Kermie, stop being so jittery." Miss Piggy said, putting the strap of her bag over her shoulder. "What happened in London, won't happen again. And it certainly won't happen here! I'll meet you back at the house."

When Piggy left, Kermit went to his office. He slouched in his chair, and let out a breath. Though he was suppose to be relaxing on break like most of the Muppets were, he couldn't help but think of the whole recent Constantine situation. Not that he was worried about him getting out, but he was worried about any other threats against the Muppets.

Someone then entered his office all of a sudden, and Kermit sat up. Gonzo came in.

"Gonzo, what are you doing here?" The frog asked.

"Sorry to interrupt you Kermit, but I have just one technical question that I needed to ask in person."

"What is it?"

"If I was able to afford the help of moving in a grown lion into the studios, would you allow it?"

"A lion?" Kermit asked, worried. "Do you want to end up in a full body cast, again?"

"Okay, I'll just go with the jet pack and pool." Gonzo concluded. "Thanks, that's all I needed!" He then walked out of the office, and Kermit sat back in his chair.

He took some notes off his desk, and looked at them. He was trying to figure out exactly what kind of security the group needed. Would they need full time, or just someone who can have a run through with people they hire when scheduling things. The frog was stuck. It was such a simple question, but he didn't know if one or the other was too much or too little.

Kermit looked at his phone, and got an idea. Maybe he needed an opinion from someone who agreed with Kermit about being cautious, in the first place. Kermit looked through his contacts, and speed dialled Walter.

* * *

Walter put on a black blazer over his white button down shirt. Him, Gary, Mary, and Lily were gonna get dinner at a little bistro, a few blocks over. It was a semi-formal place, so Walter needed to change. He also hadn't seen Lily in a long time, so he wanted to make a good impression.

The boy looked at himself in the mirror, straightening is blazer. He was ready to go. Before he left the guest room, his phone buzzed. He looked at who was calling, it was Kermit.

He picked up. "Kermit?"

"Hey, Walter. Sorry to interrupt you on everyone's holiday, but can I get your opinion on something?"

"Uh...yeah sure, anything."

"For security, do you think we should get full time, or just someone who can do a check-through with anyone we hire?"

Walter thought about it for a moment, but had a clear answer.

"Honestly, I think part-time works best."

"Really?"

"Well, yeah. If you guys were able to last years without any security, I think we still can. That whole Constantine thing only happened as soon as you hired someone we didn't know, which you've never done."

Kermit hesitated for a second, looking at his notes. It was silent, but the frog followed his instincts.

"Yeah, I think you're right. Thanks, Walter."

"No problem..." Walter responded. The young muppet's voice was nervous-like, because his mind was still set on dinner with Lily. Kermit took notice to this.

"Is everything okay, Walter? You sound frazzled." His leader asked, concerned.

"Well, I-"

The guest room then swung open, and Gary entered.

"Come on, bud. We have to go." His brother said, leaving again.

"Walter?" Kermit's voice asked through the phone. Walter turned his attention back to him, changing his mind. This wasn't something he wanted to bring up with anyone, right now.

"Uh, it's nothing!" He quickly said, "I'll see you later."

"Oh, uh...okay. Bye" Kermit said, not really convinced.

Walter hung up the phone, not really happy with how he left Kermit on the other end. He was probably suspicious of him, after that. But Walter didn't really care, now. He had a dinner to get to.

 **Make sure to come back for part 3!**


	3. Chapter 3

Walter, Gary, and Mary sat at an outside table at the bistro. It was a peaceful evening. Or at least, it should have been. Every so often, Walter would look up from his menu, and see Gary and Mary staring at him. Again, with the same questionable expressions. Walter came to his home town so that he could relax, but it felt like his brother was playing mind games with him. The boy decided to test things out.

"So, uh guys." Walter said, putting his menu down. "I was talking to Zach and Parker, and we had this idea the you guys are...up to something."

Gary and Mary exchanged a look, still smiling.

"What exactly do you think we're up to?" Gary asked, shady like.

Walter rolled his eyes at his older brother. "I know you guys are trying to set me up with Lily. Now, let me save you the trouble by telling you that it's never gonna happen."

"Why is that?" Mary asked, teasingly.

"Yeah," Gary said. "That's probably not how you felt in high school."

"Will you guys stop?" Walter exasperated, feeling infuriated with them. "She lives across the country, anyway. I'm telling you, it's not gonna hap-"

"There she is." Mary said, looking past Walter.

Walter turned around, and saw Lily approaching their table. Considering they hadn't seen each other in so long, she looked different.

But good different, in Walter's eyes.

Once again, Lily also had the form of a humanoid puppet. She had beautiful, long hazel brown hair that had an ombre into a golden blonde. As well as cute side bangs, that fell gently over her beautiful eyes. Her eyes were also a pretty hazel, with black eyelashes that let them pop out. She had pale peach skin and was wearing a navy blue lace dress, with cap sleeves and a black cardigan over it.

 _Woah._ Walter thought to himself. _That's new._

As Mary got up from the table to greet Lily, Walter didn't notice how much he was staring. Gary nudged his brother, snapping him out of it.

"Hey, guys!" Lily said happily, sitting next to Walter. Her voice was sweet and crisp, like Walter remembered.

"Walter," she said. "Long time no see, bud."

"Heh, yeah you too." Walter said, still a bit flustered. "You look, great..."

"Aw, thanks." She responded, "so do you. What happened to the brace face kid?"

"He's still here, just with...straighter teeth."

Lily laughed at his humour, her laughter was so beautiful. What was happening? Surely this isn't how Walter felt for her when they were kids. Heck, they've known each other since they were five years old. As for high school, that was a whole other situation. There was probably some sort of feelings going on, but Walter always blamed it on adolescent hormones going on in his head.

Throughout their meal, Walter could not stop listening to Lily. She was also an artist. Lily was extremely talented, funny, and was a beautiful singer. While growing up, it was clear her and Walter both had a knack for performing on stage. Lily was as well fascinated with Walter's stories of being an official Muppet. Of course, she was a fan. She remembers watching old tapes of their shows with Walter, as a kid. The last time the two saw each other, Lily left for college to study musical theatre in New York. Currently, she did a lot of off-broadway plays. As many as her agent could get her, that is.

Halfway through the evening, Gary and Mary stood up from the table.

"Well, we're gonna get going." Gary said.

"Go?" Walter said, "it's so early."

"Well, we've got some wedding stuff to go over. Speaking of, can we see you for a second Walter?" Mary said, the engaged couple already walking away from the table. Walter hesitated, but sighed and went along with it.

"I'll be right back." He told Lily.

"No problem." She responded.

Walter approached Gary and Mary, who were waiting for him by the exit.

"Ok, you guys are leaving for one of two reasons. Either one, you're trying to get out of paying the bill. Or two, you're trying to leave me alone with Lily." The young muppet said, scowling at them.

"Walter, a great girl like Lily is rare. I don't see what the problem is." Gary said, trying to convince his brother.

"The problem is, is that she lives almost 3,000 miles from where I am. That wouldn't work!"

"Well, didn't you hear about her moving plans?" Mary asked, smirking.

Walter arched an eyebrow at his soon to be sister-in-law. "I may have heard something, but not entirely."

"Well guess you'll have to ask her." Gary said, putting his arm around Mary. "And thanks for covering the bill, too." The long-term couple then walked out of the bistro, leaving Walter confused and conflicted.

Walter let out a breath, and made his way back to the table. He sat next to Lily, who smiled at him.

"So uh, Lily..." Walter began, looking at his friend. "I heard that you're planning on moving. Where are you going...?"

Lily's eyes widened, and she slapped her hand against her forehead. "Oh my gosh, I'm so stupid! Walter, I've got the greatest news that I forgot to tell you." Lily took Walter's hands into hers, taking him by surprise. Walter's heart pounded, feeling her soft touch on him.

"What is it...?" Walter asked, trying not to blush from her hands on his.

Lily gave an award winning smile. "I'm moving to L.A.!" Walter felt his heart become faster, shocked by her news. Moving to L.A.? Did Gary and Mary know about this?

"Y-you're moving to L.A.?" Walter asked, astonished. "What happened to your Broadway plans?"

"Well, I was recently casted for a commercial, and after that, my agent told me that there is some television opportunities down in L.A. Walter, this could change my whole career around! As much as I love being on stage, I think this could be really good for me. I'll still sing, of course. I have some plans for that, too. Oh, also! I don't really know anyone around town, so maybe you can show me around...?"

Walter looked at Lily, her eyes glimmered with suspension, waiting for him to say something. Walter thought it was a great opportunity for Lily, he just didn't know how to put it into words.

"Lily, do you wanna take a walk to Smalltown Falls?" Walter awkwardly asked. Lily's smile faded, slightly. Her eyes now filled with less hope, and more confusion.

"Oh, uh...yeah sure." She responded.

After paying for the bill, the two began to make their way to Smalltown Falls. Also known as the most beautiful sight in the town. Usually, it was "the spot" to go on a romantic outing. But, that wasn't really Walter's intentions. He just needed to clear his head, and continue talking with Lily.

The two walked the entire way, in uncomfortable silence. The sun began to set, just as they made their way to the pathway on the greenery lot, that lead the the waterfall. Lily decided to break the tension.

"Walter?" She asked, her tone worried. "Does it...bother you, that I'm moving to L.A.?"

Walter turned to look at his friend, realizing that he's been coming off with a bad impression.

"No," he began. "No, no, no. Lily, I'm so excited for you to move to Los Angeles. It just...took me by surprise. Sorry, I haven't really slept for the past few days."

"Ha, yeah I can understand why." Lily said, her mood shifting. "I saw what happened to you and the Muppets in London, on the news. It looked dangerous, I'm glad you're okay."

"Thanks." Walter said, happy that she was concerned for his safety. They made their way to the falls, and sat down on the wet grass. The sunset reflected against the flowing waterfall, giving it a gorgeous glow. Walter turned his gaze to look at Lily, whose eyes were glued to the scenery.

"It's beautiful..." she said, the sunlight reflecting in her eyes.

"Yeah, it is..." he said, still looking at Lily. He turned his head, before she could notice.

"By the way," she said. "I thought your performance on the Muppet Telethon was amazing. It seems like only yesterday you were whistling on your skateboard, on your way to school."

He looked back at Lily, smiling with flattery. "Thank you. I hope no one noticed that I was shaking like a leaf the entire time."

Lily laughed, not breaking her gaze with Walter. "If I didn't notice, I don't think anyone did. You know me, I have eyes like a hawk."

"Yeah, nothing gets by you." Walter chuckled. "It's funny, you always seemed to know when I was feeling insecure. You, and my brother. I think I've always had a...self-conscious problem."

Lily put her hand on Walter's shoulder. His heart began to beat faster, again.

"You're pretty amazing, Walter. I don't see why you're self-conscious. Anyone would be lucky to be you. Or even better, be with..." Lily drifted off. Walter looked at her with confusion, not sure if she was finished.

"What was that last part?" He asked.

"Um, it was noting." She responded.

It was quiet between the two, again. Lily took her hand off Walter's shoulder, now a bit uncomfortable.

"What day do you go back?" She asked, twiddling her thumbs, staring at them.

"Friday. When do you move?"

"I'm going back to New York, tomorrow. But, I'll be in L.A. around next Wednesday."

Walter shot his gaze back to Lily. "Wow, you're moving right away? I thought it would maybe take a few months, or so."

Lily looked back at Walter. "Yeah, I know it's insane. They want to get me started, right away. So, this works best..."

Walter's face softened a bit, he could hear the stress in her voice. He understood. After becoming a muppet, he dropped everything in Smalltown just to get to L.A. right away. It was the biggest change in his life.

He patted her back, comforting her.

"I know it's a crazy change, but I'm really excited. After everything that happened with our world tour, I think having you around will be refreshing."

Lily arched an eyebrow. "Refreshing?"

Walter blushed, but Lily couldn't see it. The sun had set, and now the moonlight was the only light source that surrounded them. He covered it up with an awkward laugh.

"You're amazing too, Lil. I have a feeling that L.A. is gonna be the town of your big break."

Lily smiled, and got up. Walter did the same.

"Thanks." She said. "Goodnight, Walter."

As she turned to walk away, her hair whipped against Walter's face. He flinched as it did so, but the aroma of her hair filled him with warmth, on the inside. He smiled, watching her walk away out of sight. He wasn't sure what he was feeling. He couldn't channel it. He just let it sit there, inside him.

"Night, Lily..." Walter whispered into the dark night. The boy then began to walk home.

* * *

Kermit sat in the living room of his mansion, looking down at his notes. He was gonna take Walter's advice, and hire part-time security. And he knew just the person, to do it. Even better, a muppet. He picked up his phone, to call Electric Mayhem.

"Dr. Teeth?" Kermit said, talking on the phone. "If it's okay, I'd like to give Animal an extra job. Nothing too big."

"Well, that's fine frog. As long as it doesn't involve trying to eat a drum set. That almost ended badly, last time..." Dr. Teeth responded on the other end.

"Eat drums!?" A raspy voice said, in the background.

"No, Animal! Heal!" Floyd's voice also spoke.

"Uh, don't worry. It's nothing like that, but something we definitely need his good senses, for." Kermit said, overwhelmed by the noises that were coming out of the phone.

"What is it?" Dr. Teeth asked.

"Well, because of everything that happened with Dominic and Constantine, I think we need some sort of security to scope out new people we hire. Besides Walter, Animal also knew. So, I think he's right for it."

"Well I'm fine for it, frog." Teeth said. "But don't ya think Walter should work with him, also? That boy has an epic eye for this stuff."

Kermit hesitated. This was something he already thought of, and decided not to. He had a good reason, but couldn't say why. It's still something the frog had a lot of planning, and thinking to do about.

"Well, I would..." Kermit said. "But, I can't. I may need Walter for something else, that I might want him to take. But, I don't plan on brining it up to him, or anyone for a while. Not until I've thought it all through, and have gotten some other opinions about it. So, if you could please not bring that up with anyone else, that would be really great."

"Uh, yeah. No problem, Kermit." Dr. Teeth said, now intrigued as to what Kermit was up to.

"Thanks, Teeth. If Animal has any problems with this, let me know."

"Yeah, for sure chief."

They ended the phone call, and Kermit tossed his notes on the coffee table. At least their security problem was thought of, and out of the way. But now, he had some other things to think about.

* * *

Walter walked up the pathway of Gary and Mary's house, still thinking about his conversation with Lily. He couldn't believe she was moving to L.A. It's great. But, he can't figure out why a part of him feels weird about it.

Before he entered the house, he stood on the porch. He needed to clear his head, before Gary and Mary crowded him with questions about the rest of his night. Walter looked up at the suburban night. Stars crowded the dark blue sky, twinkling. Perfect scenery, and a perfect moment for Walter to get things straight.

Getting things straight about what he was feeling, for Lily.

He didn't have a crush for her. No, there was no way. Was there? Maybe he was just overwhelmed by her stunning, matured beauty. Or maybe her talent, or humour, or maybe her personality. Oh wait...that is a crush.

Walter shook his head. This is ridiculous, he only saw her for a night. That doesn't mean anything. She was a friend. Just a friend. She was going to move to L.A., and Walter is going to show her around as a friend. That's it.

Walter let out a breath, exhausted. That was his final decision, and he needed to sleep. This weird feeling would go away in the morning.

Or, so he thought.

Walter entered the house, awaiting Gary and Mary's eagerness. He turned the corner from the entrance hall, to the living room. The two sat there, and perked up when Walter came in.

"Hey there, Mr. lucky!" Mary chanted. Walter rolled his eyes.

"How did the rest of the night go?" Gary asked, hope in his voice.

"Pretty good." Walter said, trying not to be too blunt. Walter crossed his arms and gave the couple a smirk. "You guys could have told me sooner that Lily is moving to L.A."

"Isn't it exciting?" Mary chirped, happily. "She'll be in the same town as you! Maybe you guys can double date to our wedding and-"

"Mary." Walter said, interrupting her. "We're just friends. She's moving to L.A., and I'm gonna show her around, as a friend."

Gary and Mary chuckled a bit, amused by Walter's defence against it all. Walter set out a sigh of impatience.

"Oh, by the way." Walter all of a sudden remembered something. "Gary, what happened to dad's window washing truck? Did it break down, again?"

Gary and Mary's moods all of a sudden shifted. They exchanged an uncomfortable look, and looked back at Walter with discomfort. Walter noticed this, and knew something had happened.

"What is it?" He asked.

"Well Walter, I...I kind of sold the truck..." Gary said, scratching the back of his head. Walter felt his stomach drop a bit. That was more than just a truck.

"Gary..." Walter said. "Dad gave us that truck before he..." Walter drifted off. It wasn't something he liked to talk about. He was very close to his father, and was devastated when he died in the army, when Walter was still 18. After college, Walter went into the window washing business with Gary, using their father's old truck that he left for them. Walter was still in his early twenties, so he couldn't believe it had happen only a few years, ago.

"I know buddy, but I had to. You see...I got a new job." Gary said, trying to get his brother on board.

"You did?" Walter said, surprised. "Where?"

"I'm an auto mechanic, down at the shop. They offered me a job, with better pay, and better working facilities. It's really good for everything Mary and I have coming up."

"Gary, that's...great!" Walter said, trying to show that he was happy for his brother.

Gary took Walter's reaction by surprise. "Really? You're okay?"

"Well, come on. You couldn't keep that car, forever. This is you're career, we're talking about! If it's better for you, it's better for you."

Gary smiled in return. "Thanks, buddy."

"Thanks, Walter." Mary also said, gratefully.

"I'm gonna get some sleep. I'm still pretty sleep deprived." Walter said, turning and beginning to walk away.

"Walter?" Gary called out. Walter turned to look at him.

"Yeah?"

Gary smiled at his brother. "I forgot to tell you this at the Muppet Telethon, but...dad would be really proud of you. He always has been."

Walter looked towards a picture of his father on the mantle. It was a picture of him in his U.S. Marines Corps lieutenant suit. He stood proudly, holding his helmet. Walter had the same picture of him, back in L.A.

"Yeah, I know he would...thanks Gary." Walter said, still looking at the photo. "Night, guys." Walter then walked down to the guest bedroom. When he got there, he shut the door behind him, and leaned against it. What a day. He didn't really have the energy to think it all through, though, All he knew, was that he need to sleep it off.

Walter took his black blazer off, and through it onto his suitcase. He knows it should be hung up, but he was too tired to really care. Before Walter could continue getting ready, he got a text from Lily.

It read:

 _I'll see you in L.A., buddy. :)_

Walter all of a sudden felt his heart beat, again. That same feeling washing over him.

He texted back:

 _For sure. Excited for you to come. :)_

Walter put his phone down, and fell onto his bed. He looked at the ceiling, his heart still fluttering.

"Great. Just when I thought I got rid of that feeling..."


	4. Chapter 4

Walter spent the rest of the week in Smalltown, enjoying himself. He got the sleep he needed, and was now better well rested. However, it didn't necessarily mean that he didn't stop thinking about Lily's move to L.A. It started with the night at the bistro, then continued on with Walter's text from her, afterwards. From there on in, things proceeded.

Walter and Lily spent the entire week texting back and forth. When Walter was hanging out with his friends, when it was late at night, or early in the morning. He was so intertwined with his phone, as long as Lily was on the other end.

When Walter went back to L.A. on Friday, he had a few days until the Muppets got back to work. On Sunday, Walter was finishing unpacking the remainder of his boxes in his flat. Fozzie came over, to help him.

Walter placed the framed photo of his father, on the side table in the living room. Fozzie was looking through one of his boxes.

Fozzie pulled out a book, and looked at it. "Finances for Dummies?" The bear asked.

Walter turned towards his friend. "Oh yeah, I bought that in college. It's actually pretty useful."

Fozzie took the rest of the books out, and carried them to the CD/book shelf. As he placed them in, he looked around.

"Nice place..." He awed. "How'd you afford it?"

"I've been saving up, for years." Walter responded. "That book had a lot to do with it."

"For a nice apartment?"

"Well, no. I didn't exactly know I'd be moving to L.A. one day. I just thought that the extra finance would be good in the future."

Walter then felt his phone buzz in his back pocket. He pulled it out, and saw that Lily was calling. Walter nervously looked at Fozzie, who was still occupied with stacking books and CDs on the shelf. Without the bear seeing, Walter snuck around the corner from the living room, to the hall. He snuck into the closest door, which was the closet. It was pitch black, so Walter pulled on the handle of the dangling light, turning it on.

"Hey, Lily." Walter said, answering his phone. He spoke quietly.

"Hey! So since I'll be here Wednesday, do you want to come and help me unpack?" She asked, excitement in her voice. Hearing her on the other end caused Walter's heart to flutter, again. They had been texting all week, and hadn't verbally talked since the first night they saw each other. Walter ignored the pounding in his chest, and continued to talk to Lily.

"Uh, sure. What time?"

"How 'bout 4:30?"

Walter thought about it, and remembered that he had rehearsal.

"I actually only get out of rehearsal around 5, so can I come after then?"

"Yeah sure, I'll text you the address."

There was suddenly a knock on the door, startling Walter.

"Walter?" Fozzie asked. "Are you talking to someone in the closet?"

"Uh, no!" Walter said through the door, nervously. He lifted his phone back to his ear.

"Kay Lily, I have to go! See you Wednesday!" Walter quickly hung up. He didn't want anyone to know about Lily, now. Not when he was having these weird feelings for her. Walter opened the closet door, to see a confused Fozzie.

"Just, um...watching a youtube video." Walter covered up.

Fozzie looked at him, uncertain. "Oh, uh...okay."

"Come on, theres still some stuff to unpack." Walter said, walking past Fozzie, to the living room. Fozzie walked into the closet, looking around.

"I bet there's a ghost, in here." He pondered.

* * *

 _Beep! Beep! Beep!_

Walter's alarm clock went off. Walter rolled over in his bed, slapping the off button with his hand. It was 8:30. Kermit asked everyone to be there for 10:00. Walter was always worried about not getting there in time, so he made sure to get up way before.

Though it wasn't that early, Walter groggily got out of bed. Probably because his body was use to the relaxation of his holiday. But, he was ready to start their muppet rehearsals. This was his job, now. And he couldn't ask for anything, better.

However, Walter was still pretty tired. He'd stayed up really late, texting Lily. This girl was taking up most of his attention. He needed to try and get through a day, without texting with her. But, he couldn't help it. She was amazing, and texting her all week has been great.

Walter rubbed his eyes, as he entered the kitchen. He then remembered he hadn't bought any coffee beans yet, and groaned. Looks like he was gonna take a stop at a coffee shop, on the way to work.

* * *

Gonzo tugged a miniature pool, into the auditorium of the Muppet Studios. Scooter and Rowlf watched, skeptically.

"A pool?" Scooter asked, looking through his clipboard. "What happened with the lion taming plan?"

"Kermit thought it was too dangerous." Gonzo responded, putting the pool down.

"I think everything you do is too dangerous." Rowlf said. "So, what's the pool for?"

"Picture this," Gonzo said. "Gonzo the Great, falls from the height of 40 feet. Everything watches in awe, afraid for the muppet's life! And then all of a sudden, BOOM!"

Rowlf and Scooter shared a look. "You blow up?" Rowlf asked.

"No. Gonzo the Great ignites his jetpack at the last minute, and soars above the audience's heads. He swoops his way back to the stage, and disables the jetpack, landing in the pool!"

Scooter and Rowlf stayed quiet for a second, not sure how to respond.

"Well, it sounds great. But, where will you get the water for the pool?" Scooter asked.

"The hose in the ally way, duh." Gonzo said. "It is a working progress, though. Maybe I can juggle the chickens as I do it."

Just then, the auditorium door opened. Walter entered, drinking coffee out of a to-go cup.

"Hey, Walter." Scooter said, first.

Walter approached the three other muppets, his eyes tired. "Hey, guys."

They looked at the boy, questionably. "You okay, Walter? You look tired." Gonzo said. Walter thought of his late night texting with Lily. He tried to think of something else to say, instead.

"Just...didn't really sleep, last night." Walter said, covering it up. _Wow, nice cover._ He thought to himself.

"Well, don't worry." Scooter said, "your whistling act isn't until afterwards. But, we were hoping you could also be in the..."

As Scooter went on, Walter looked at him, as though he was listening. He knew it was bad not to, but he was really tired. He made a miniature promise to himself at that moment, to get better sleep that night. To not text Lily, too late.

"So if you could just meet up Rowlf, Bunsen, and Beaker around 11:00, they'll go over it with you." Scooter finished. Walter only heard the last part, and nodded. He wasn't sure what he had just agreed to be a part of. He was pretty sure it was one of Bunsen's crazy experiments. Good thing they were gonna tell Walter about it, later.

Later that day during their break, many of the muppets talked amongst each other. Walter sat in the audience chairs with Fozzie and Rowlf, chatting. The boy looked at his phone, to check the time, and saw a text from Lily. He knew he said he would go through the whole day without texting back, but he couldn't help it. It just gave him a lot of joy, talking with her.

"Guys?" Scooter said, walking over. "Does anyone know how to get someone's head out of a glass container? Beaker is stuck in one..."

"Not really," Fozzie said. "I sometimes forget how to get myself out of the theatre."

"Maybe I can do something." Walter said. "I'm sure if whistled a high enough pitch, it could shatter it."

Scooter perked up at Walter's suggestion. "Good idea, Walter! Let's go!" Walter put his phone down, and went with Scooter. Fozzie and Rowlf followed.

Walter's phone stayed in his chair, his text chat with Lily still open. Animal came along, breathing heavily like he always did. Electric Mayhem was gonna meet in the lobby to tune their instruments. Animal then noticed the lone smart phone, resting on the chair. He turned his head, looking at the chat.

"LI-LY." Animal sounded out, looking at the contact name. "Lily." Animal didn't know who that was, or whose phone it was. He used his finger to touch the phone, but did it a little too aggressively and abruptly. The text chat scrolled up, and Animal saw another name, that he knew.

"Walter." Animal said, knowing that name. "Walter phone!"

"Come on, Animal!" Floyd called from across the room. "The band is meeting in the lobby."

Animal looked back at the phone, once more. "LILY." He spoke, again. The muppet shook his head, grunting. He left to go to the lobby.

Moments later, Walter walked back with Bunsen.

"Thank you, Walter." Bunsen said. "Your high pitched whistle is exactly the kind of result to get Beaker out of glass, that I've been looking for, for years!"

"Wow, thanks Bunsen." Walter responded, flattered.

Bunsen left, and Walter looked towards his phone.

"Whoops, forgot that there." Walter said, picking it up. He unlocked his smart phone, looking at his chat with Lily. "Good thing no one saw."

He looked at his phone, reading Lily's text.

It read:

 _I was gonna wait another day or two to text you, but I guess I can't wait that long to talk to you :)_

Walter blushed, and smiled bashfully. He chuckled slightly, and texted back.

 _Ha, I was thinking the same..._

Walter continued to smile, enjoying the slight flirting. Okay, maybe it was really obvious flirting. But, he was honestly having a good time. What he didn't notice though, was that Kermit and Fozzie were looking at him from the stage.

"Why is he smiling like that?" Fozzie curiously asked.

"I'm not sure." Kermit said, still looking at a flushed Walter. The frog turned to Fozzie. "You helped him unpack yesterday, did he say anything?"

"Nope." Fozzie responded, "but, he was randomly talking in his closet. I think there's a ghost in it." The bear walked away, and Kermit turned his gaze back to Walter. The boy still smiled at the phone he was looking down at.

"Hm..." Kermit pondered.

 _Two days till' the big day, you excited?_ Walter texted.

 _Yeah, I really am. Excited to see you, too._ Lily responded.

Later, when rehearsal was done, Walter was getting ready to go.

"Hey, Walter!" Fozzie said, approaching him. Walter turned towards the bear.

"Hey, Fozzie."

"So, is it too hot in here for you, or something?"

Walter looked at his friend, confused and a bit weirded out. "Sorry?"

"Well, your face was really red before." Fozzie said, "was it like, too warm?"

Walter swallowed, and didn't say anything at first. But if he was gonna still keep Lily a secret, he had to go along with whatever crazy reason Fozzie suspected.

"Yeah, I guess." Walter lied. "Just a...little warm."

"Don't be embarrassed." Fozzie smiled, "I sweat underneath my fur here, all the time. I think the thermostat is broken."

Walter laughed nervously, continuing to lie.

"Well, guess I better go before I...overheat, heh..." The younger Muppet said. "See ya later, Fozzie." Walter then walked away, feeling a bit nervous. That was close, he has to be more careful when texting Lily in the studios.

Electric Mayhem walked up next to Fozzie, watching Walter walk away.

"What is like, the deal?" Janice asked, in her slangy voice. "With Walter?"

"Yeah man, that boy looked more nervous than flock o' chickens." Floyd agreed.

"Well, he was blushing before. I asked him if it was too hot in here, and he said yes." Fozzie said, confident with the answer.

"Just like that?" Dr. Teeth said. "Huh, guess that has to be it." Janice shrugged her shoulders, not really sure. The entire band was actually unsure, but not Fozzie. He believed Walter. Animal stood behind them, also watching Walter exit the auditorium.

"Li-ly." Animal muttered, for only him to hear.


	5. Chapter 5

Today was the day. It was Wednesday, and Walter wast itching for rehearsal to end so he could go see Lily. Walter never thought in a million years, he would want to pass the time to leave the Muppet Studios, and go to see something else. Or in this case, someone else.

The clock was about to hit 5, and Kermit had just rounded everyone up to say some technical things.

"Gonzo, I'm just not so sure about the 40 foot drop." Kermit said. "I mean, we're not doing the show until next week, but it still sounds dangerous even with a huge amount of rehearsal."

"Well in my defence, you think all my ideas are dangerous." Gonzo responded. Many of the other Muppets nodded in agreement. Kermit sighed.

"Okay, please just don't push it too much." Kermit said.

"I think that's it, chief." Scooter said, looking at his clipboard. Kermit nodded.

"Okay, everyone thats a wrap for today. Nice work." The frog concluded. All the Muppets began to scatter, getting ready to end the day. They all made their ways out of the theatre, slowly. Of course, they like to stay and chat since they were a family. They were never in a rush. It was unlikely for someone to.

But today, Walter was. He tried to quickly leave, but it didn't go unnoticed.

"Hey, Walter!" Someone said behind him, approaching him. Walter turned around, to see Scooter, Fozzie, and Gonzo.

"Hey." Walter casually said.

"We're going to see a movie, you wanna come?" Scooter asked. Walter swallowed, nervously. Oh, man. He was gonna mess this up, wasn't he?

"Well, I...kind of have plans..." Walter said, getting confused looks from the trio.

"Plans?" Gonzo said, "you haven't been in L.A. for that long. With who?"

"It's not exactly plans." Walter covered up. "It's more like...an appointment."

"Appointment?" Fozzie asked.

"Yeah, there was a...power outage in my apartment last night. The handy man of our building is coming by to each door, and see if anyone was...tinkering with wires we shouldn't have been." Walter lied. He felt selfish for lying, but had to if he didn't want to tell them about Lily.

"Power outage, huh? That's too bad. We've had a few of those, here." Scooter said. Walter relaxed on the inside, glad that they believed his lie.

"Well, I gotta go take care of that. Don't spoil the movie for me, tomorrow." Walter said, making his way to the door.

"Don't worry, we won't!" Fozzie laughed, "see ya, Walter."

As Walter left, Kermit came and stood by the trio. He watched Walter walk away.

"Is everything okay?" Kermit asked, concerned.

"Yeah, there was a power outage in his building. He had to get home before the landlord came to his door." Scooter explained.

"Power outage? In just his building?" The frog said.

"Yup." Fozzie said, not suspecting anything at all.

As Walter left the auditorium, Kermit continued to ponder to himself. He knew something was up. Kermit had been in this family long enough to know when someone is hiding something. But, Walter was still just a kid. He was also new to L.A., so what could've been causing him to act so secretive? Kermit didn't know what it was, but he was now suspicious of the boy.

* * *

Walter caught a taxi cab, and told the address to the driver that Lily had texted him. As the cab drove across downtown L.A., Walter felt more and more nervous. He tried to remind himself that he was just helping her unpack, and nothing more. But the flirty texts were probably gonna make this meet all the more weirder. Should he have changed? Maybe have re-done his hair? But, it didn't really matter. It was too late, now. He was on his way.

After a little ways, Walter's smart phone began to ring. He picked it up, and saw it was Gary.

"Hey, Gary." Walter said, answering the phone.

"Ask her out." His brother said, without even saying hi. Walter felt his stomach drop. He did not at all expect that.

"W-what?"

"Ask her out! Walter, this could lead to something, great!"

"Okay, I know it can. But, what if it doesn't? What if she doesn't want to...go out with me." Walter said, nervously playing with the fabric on his black, faded jeans. The cab driver gave him a funny look when he said that out loud.

"The worst thing she'd say would be no." Gary reassured him. "There's no harm in doing it, but I honestly think she's really into you."

Walter sat up, slightly. "You do?"

"Yeah! So, ask her."

Walter swallowed, and felt his chest grow heavy. But a little voice in his head reminded him that if he doesn't do this now, he'll regret it.

"Ok, I'll try. I'll...ask her out."

"Let me know how it goes." Gary said.

"Yeah, will do. Bye." Walter hung up the phone, just in time for the cab to pull onto Lily's corner. When the cab came to a stop, Walter's heart pounded. He was nervous.

 _Walter, calm down._ He thought to himself. _You're just helping her unpack._

He swallowed.

 _And...asking her out._

After Walter payed the cab driver, he exited the car.

"Hey, kid!" The cab driver called out. "One more thing." Walter turned to look at the driver.

"Make sure you make it clear you're asking her out." The stranger advised. Walter took his advice by surprise, but nodded.

"Ok, I will." Walter responded. The cab driver then took off, leaving Walter to stand in front of Lily's building.

Walter got to the floor that Lily said she was on, and walked down the hall. Looking for apartment 418.

 _418...418..._ He repeated in his head, looking for it. When he came upon the big white door, with the plaque on the side with the numbers 418, he nervously looked at it. He was just helping a friend unpack. One that he was gonna ask out, that is. But he needed to act cool. As though this was just another friend hang out. Walter tried to calm himself down, but he couldn't. Who was he kidding?

Walter had feelings for Lily.

He had been pushing it back, and not admitting it to himself. But, now was the time. He had to ask her out. The worst thing she can do is say no, just like Gary said. That being so, Walter knocked on the door.

"Just a second!" Lily's voice said from the other side, making Walter all warm on the inside. Lily then opened the door.

"Walter!" She happily said, throwing her arms around him and hugging him. Walter felt his face go hot, as he hugged her back. His heart pounded, with her so suddenly close. He's surprised she didn't feel his pounding heart, while leaned up against his chest. They pulled away from the hug.

"Hey, Lily." He said, his voice sort of hoarse. Shoot.

"Come on, there's a lot of stuff." Lily said, pulling him in. Walter looked around the apartment. Besides the boxes, it was nice. L.A. flat nice, like Walter's. But, slightly smaller. Most apartments in L.A. were really nice, if you had money. Walter's was just a bit more expensive, since he was now a Muppet star.

"Hope my unpacking issues don't interfere with your rehearsals, Mr. big shot." She said.

"Heh, don't worry. The Muppets aren't that hectic." He said. Lily smiled, glad to see Walter, and have him help her.

"Okay, so the movers already helped me with my furniture. So, thats fine. Walter, you have no idea how excited I am! You won't believe it! I already have plans to-" Walter stopped Lily, by holding her by her shoulders.

"Lily, deep breaths. Not all at once." He advised her. Lily did as told.

"Sorry," She said, smiling. "I just...can't believe I'm here."

"I know the feeling," Walter agreed, letting go of her shoulders. "The night I became a Muppet, I couldn't breathe in enough air."

As Lily and Walter unpacked Lily's stuff, Walter thought to himself. How was he gonna do this? How was he gonna ask her out? A million different versions raced through his head.

 _So you wanna go out sometime, or what?_

 _How 'bout we go out sometime?_

 _Hey, you're coming out with me. That's not a request._

Walter sighed to himself, accidentally catching Lily's attention. "Is everything okay?"

Walter looked back at her. "Uh yeah. My throat's just a little dry..."

"Here, I'll get you some water." Lily stood up, and went to the kitchen. When she was gone, Walter stood up, and started pacing back and forth.

"Okay, calm down." Walter reassured to himself. "You know you make things weird when you're not calm." Walter closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He needed to relax. It was just asking her on a date.

"Do it when you leave." He told himself, "that way, she'll have less time to think about-" Walter immediately shut his mouth, as soon as Lily entered with his water. She handed it to him, and looked at him suspiciously.

"Were you talking to someone?" She asked. Walter blushed, embarrassed.

"Just...talking to myself." He nervously said. Instead of being weirded out, Lily laughed.

"Don't worry, I can relate. I talk to myself all the time, before going on stage to perform." She said, happily. Instead of feeling nervous or embarrassed, Walter smiled back. With his natural, relaxed smile.

"You have a nice smile, Walter..." Lily said, looking at him differently.

"Thanks..." He responded, channeling every cell in his body to prevent him from blushing.

As Lily and Walter unpacked, Walter pulled out a photo album.

"What's this?" Walter said, opening it. Lily looked up from the box she was rummaging through.

"Oh, just some old childhood photos."

Walter flipped through the pages, recognizing a lot of photos of Lily as a small child and her with her parents. He then stumbled across a photo he recognized all too well. It was a picture of him and Lily as little kids at the Smalltown Summer Carnival.

It was captioned: _Walter and Lily, 8 years old._

"I forgot about this..." Walter said.

"What?" Lily said, coming over. She sat where Walter was sat on the floor, and observed the photo. "Hey, it's us! Oh my gosh, we were so little..."

"I know..."

"Your father took that photo." Lily said, holding the album closer to her. She then realized what she just said, and looked at Walter. "Oh, Walter. I didn't..."

"No, don't worry." Walter reassured her. "It's been years since he...you know." Lily nodded, but didn't break her gaze from Walter. Neither did he. They both stared at each other for a moment, not looking away.

"Walter..." Lily spoke quietly, "you look so much like your father..." She gazed into him. Walter didn't shutter a breath, or blush. He just took it all in.

"Thanks..." He said. The boy then realized that now was more than a perfect time to ask her. He didn't know how, he just had to say it. "Lily?"

"Yes...?" She asked, still looking at him.

Walter swallowed. "Did you want to...go out with me on Friday night...?" He all of a sudden saw something change in Lily's face. He wasn't sure if it was good or bad. He felt his heart pound.

"Go out, Friday...?" She said. "Like, on a date?"

Walter looked her in the eyes, now more solemnly. "Yes."

It was moments before she said anything, making Walter nervous again. Until a small, yet sweet smile formed on her face. "I'd love to, Walter."

Walter felt his heart leap, with glory. He not only asked her out, but felt as though she was intrigued to do ask herself. But the point was, he did it. He was going out with a girl he really liked. Yes, a girl he liked.

Walter smiled, as he put the album down. "That's great! I-I don't know exactly what we'll do, yet. I'll text you details, but maybe we can-" Lily all of a sudden grabbed him by the shoulders.

"Walter, deep breaths. Not all at once." She said, repeating his previous words. The two stared again for a moment, and then started to laugh.

The two spent the rest of the night, laughing and talking. They enjoyed each other's company, after all that texting. And, they could hardly wait for Friday. As soon as Walter was done rehearsal that day, he was gonna get to his apartment, get ready, and meet Lily at 6. It was a short time, but he could do it.

Walter eventually left Lily's new place, to head on home. They've been so distracted talking and unpacking, they hadn't notice how late it had gotten. But, Walter didn't care. He enjoyed every last minute of it. As soon as Walter had entered his apartment, he couldn't help himself. It all came bursting out.

"WOOHOO!" He yelled, throwing himself onto the couch. He looked at the night sky outside his window, and sighed happily. The beautiful night lights shimmered, and Walter just stared off into them.

He sighed happily, and leaned his head back on the couch. What a suspenseful, yet great day it had been.


	6. Chapter 6

Far away, in Siberia, Russia. Right outside Gulag prison...

Alarms and search lights went off. Two men had escaped, and all the guards were on alert. It was impossible. But, not for these lucky ones.

Miles away from the prison, a manhole cover shifted open. One by one, two gruff, shady men came out of it in their prison outfits. They closed the manhole cover to the sewer and looked at the Gulag in the distance.

"Idiots." One of the men said, with a thick Russian accent. He scratched his beard.

"Now that we are out...we must avenge Constantine." The other said. "By getting revenge..."

"On Kermit?"

"No, you stupid!" The man pulled out the newspaper article from when The Muppets defeated Constantine in London. He pointed to Walter in the group picture, with his dirty fingernail. "On his little helper..."

The other man looked closer at Walter. "Why are we trying to defeat that little shrimp kid? And not Kermit?" The man shoved the newspaper away.

"Because! He's the whole reason Constantine's plans were foiled. Kermit would still be in the Gulag, if that Walter hadn't known of Constantine's plan. He's a smart kid...and a threat to Constantine. Which makes him our enemy. Constantine's request was for us to get rid of that Muppet kid, and we will do so."

"And why can't Constantine do it, himself?" His partner asked, crossing his arms. The man tugged him by his shirt collar.

"Because, fool. Constantine is now in heavily guarded lock up, for life. And we are loyal to him."

"Right..."

The man let go of him. "Now, let's go. I know someone who will get us what we need, so we can get to the city of...Los Angeles."

* * *

 _Friday._ Walter thought to himself. _It's here._

As calm as Walter looked to all his friends on the outside, he was freaking out within. He had spent all of last night picking out something nice to wear, but not too casual. He could hardly wait to see Lily.

But, Walter had noticed something else. He was getting a few stares from the people he had been lying to, for the past few days. He thought the obvious, that they may have known about Lily. But, there was no way. Walter had hidden it too well. He just had to get through today. And if the date goes well, maybe he'll start telling his friends about her.

At the end of the day, Walter knew he had to get home if he wanted to be ready for sure. He wanted to avoid the awkward lies though, so he decided to leave the theatre through the back.

When they were all dismissed, Walter snuck to the back door. He went, determined. But, he slowed down. As the boy was walking, he felt as though someone was watching him. Then, he for sure knew someone was watching him. Walter heard a familiar, heavy breathing. The boy stopped in his tracks, and turned around. Animal stood there, watching him.

Walter didn't know what to really say. The fellow Muppet was kind of just watching, and breathing. Actually, he always did that. But, Animal had funny senses. He was probably also suspicious of Walter.

"Hey, Animal." Walter said, nervously. "Is there something you-"

"LILY." Animal all of a sudden blurted out. Walter felt as though his stomach fell right through the floor. That's not possible. No, there was no way. Did Animal just say...? But, how...? Walter swallowed. He hoped Animal hadn't repeated her name in front of anyone else.

"How do you..." Walter could barely finish his sentence. But, Animal knew how to answer.

"You leave phone!" Animal responded. Walter played around with his smart phone in his sweater pocket. He must have left the screen on when he left it on the chair the other day. He looked at the time, he had to go. But, he couldn't leave yet. Not when he knew that Animal knew Lily's name.

"Animal..." Walter said, walking up to him. He looked directly at him, seriousness in his eyes. "You don't say word. Please...I'm not gonna tell anyone yet. I don't wanna jinx it..."

Animal continued to breath heavily, and tilted his head at Walter. He understood what he said, but he didn't understand why.

"Lily?" Animal repeated.

"No Lily." Walter instructed. "You don't say Lily."

"Don't say Lily?"

"Do not say Lily..."

Animal continued to look at Walter. He then broke his stare and nodded his head, grunting.

"Thank you, Animal. I promise it will all make sense, soon."

"What will make sense, soon?" Kermit said, walking towards the two. Animal whipped around, and his eyes went wide.

"NOTHING." Animal said, a bit too exaggerated. He looked back at Walter, and nodded. Walter just shook his head.

"Hey, Animal? The band is loading the truck, uh why don't you go help them?" Kermit advised, trying to get Animal to leave. Animal nodded, and left. Kermit looked at Walter for a second, until Walter broke their gaze. He lied and felt bad about it. He'd feel especially bad, doing so to Kermit.

Kermit cleared his throat "Walter, is there something...going on?" Walter swallowed the truth, trying to prevent it from coming out. Walter was just too honest, and good of a person. Not that this was a bad lie, he just really didn't want to tell anyone yet. He really likes Lily, and doesn't want to mess anything up.

"Something going on? Heh, no..." Walter responded, twiddling his thumbs. Kermit didn't take that as a truthful answer. How could he have? The boy had secret written all over his face. Kermit stepped forward.

"Whatever it is...I just want to make sure it doesn't end badly." Kermit said. Walter looked up and hesitated. The frog had him stuck in place. If he continued to lie, it would probably only concern Kermit more. But, he didn't have to be direct.

"It's nothing bad..." Walter said, giving him a more honest response. "It's nothing like that at all. I just...would rather not say, right now..." Kermit could tell that Walter was partially being honest. But, he still wouldn't admit anything. Kermit was definitely not one to push though. If Walter wanted to take his time to tell this, Kermit would respect that.

"Okay." Kermit said. "Go to whatever you have to do. And when you're ready to tell us, we'll be here."

Walter nodded, thankful for his leader's understanding. "Thanks, Kermit." And with that, Walter left through the back the door. Kermit made is way back to the stage. Though he left things on more simpler terms, his mind still raced on what Walter could possibly be hiding.

When he got to the stage, Kermit picked up his clipboard and sat on a tech box. A few remaining Muppets were on the stage as well. Miss Piggy was talking with Gonzo and Fozzie, and Scooter was giving some technical notes to Rowlf and the Electric Mayhem band .

As Kermit looked through his clipboard notes, Rowlf spoke up amongst them. "Hey, guys? Has anyone noticed that Walter has been acting funny?" Kermit tried not to intervene, forcing himself to continue looking at his notes.

Gonzo whipped around from his discussion with Fozzie and Piggy. "I have!"

"Yeah, me too!" Floyd agreed.

"Something's gone loose in that boy's brain." Dr. Teeth said. Kermit still looked at his notes, but spared a few glances at the others who agreed. Thankfully, it was only the band, Scooter, Piggy, Gonzo, Rowlf, and Fozzie. Unthankfully, they were the biggest gossips of the Muppets. Kermit hoped it would end there.

"I didn't notice anything." Fozzie said.

"Fozzie, you of all people should have noticed the most. Didn't he act weird at his apartment when you were there?" Gonzo asked, allowing all of them look at Fozzie. Kermit looked too, subtly.

"I thought that was being normal." The bear responded.

"The point is, something is going on..." Scooter said.

"What do you think it is?" Floyd said. "A family issue?"

"Nah, he would have told us." Dr. Teeth responded.

"Omg, is it not obvious?" Janice spoke up. They all looked towards her. "I mean, it's about time it happened. Walter is in fact a Y.H.S."

"Of course he's a Y.H.S.!" Miss Piggy agreed with the other female muppet. The guys all exchanged looks.

"What's a Y.H.S.?" Rowlf asked. Janice looked towards him.

"Y.H.S." She repeated. "Young. Handsome. Single." Miss Piggy nodded, but the guys were still confused. By this point, Kermit was paying a bit more attention.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Floyd asked.

Miss Piggy sighed, exasperated. "Are you all blind? It's so obvious!"

"Walter is in love with a girl!" Janice said, loudly. The guys all awed, and Kermit shot his gaze up from his clipboard.

"What?" Kermit said, putting his clipboard down. Miss Piggy looked towards her partner.

"Isn't it obvious, Kermie? No young boy acts that secretive, unless he's trying to hide a girl. He's probably with her, right now!"

"Wow, how could we not think of that?" Gonzo said.

"Probably because the only truthful love doves around here have been frog and pig." Dr. Teeth said.

"Okay, okay slow down guys." Kermit said, finally intervening. He walked towards them all. "We don't know that for sure. I mean how-"

"LILY!" Animal interupted loudly, startling all of them. They looked towards the crazy Muppet.

"What did ya say, Animal? Hard to hear when you're always-" Floyd was cut off when Animal repeated himself.

"LILY." He said a bit more calm. The Muppets stared at him blankly, for a second. Until Kermit stepped up.

"Animal, who's Lily?"

Animal shook his head, groaning. "Walter text Lily! Lily! Lily! Lily!" He had completely defied Walter's asking of him to not repeat Lily's name to anyone.

"...Is that who Walter-" Kermit was cut off again, by an excited Janice.

"Lily is like totally who Walter is seeing!" Janice said, excitedly.

"For sure it is!" Miss Piggy agreed, almost jumping up and down.

"But, why wouldn't he tell us?" Scooter said.

"Does it matter? Now we can tell him that we know." Gonzo advised.

"But-" Kermit tried to keep talking, but kept getting cut off.

"How? When did they even meet?"

"We'll have to ask him!"

"But guys-"

"I wonder if she's nice?"

"She better be, because Walter is!"

"Here, I can call Walter!"

"GUYS!" Kermit yelled, getting all of their attention. Kermit took a breath, calming down. "Guys if Walter hasn't told us, he clearly doesn't want us to know yet."

"But, why Kermit?" Fozzie asked.

Kermit shrugged, a bit overwhelmed. "I don't know, Fozzie. I was just talking to Walter, and I told him I knew something was going on. He didn't tell me, but said he just wants to keep it quiet for now."

"But, this some juicy stuff!" Gonzo said. "I wanna ask Walter how long he's been with this girl. What was her name...? Lily?"

"I know, Gonzo. But, maybe Walter hasn't...been with her for long. Maybe they're not even seeing each other, maybe it just started. The point is, Walter clearly isn't comfortable yet. When he wants to tell us, he'll tell us."

The Muppets stayed quiet, not sure how to respond.

"I guess you're right frog." Dr. Teeth finally spoke. "Walter's just a kid, anyway. He'll tell us when he wants too."

"Thanks, Teeth." Kermit said. "I hope the same guys for the rest of you. No one tells this to Walter, okay?"

"Okay..." They all said in unison.

"Kermit?" Fozzie said.

"Yes, Fozzie?"

"You think he's with her, right now?" The bear asked. The frog pondered over it. But it was too obvious, like Piggy said.

"Yeah," Kermit smiled. "I think he is. Animal and I caught him trying to sneak off."

"Aw, that's so sweet!" Piggy said, happily. "I hope she's a nice girl."

"Me too." Gonzo agreed. "I think Walter deserves someone like that, after everything he's helped us through."

Kermit nodded. But, he wasn't entirely convinced.

"Okay guys, I have to go make a phone call. Kermit said, starting to leave. He turned back to look at his friends. "Guys, don't tell this to Walter. Okay?"

The others nodded and Kermit left. Gonzo looked at the others.

"That's gonna be pretty hard..."

* * *

Walter was in his apartment, looking at himself in the mirror. He tried not to dress too casual, or too formal. Right now, he was wearing a clean pure white button down shirt, with a navy tie. He put a nice formal black sweater over it and rolled up the sleeves to his elbows. He as well wore grey non-iron dress pants, with a black belt. Currently, he was fixing his hair.

"Work with me, little bugger." Walter said, shaping his hair. When he was finally happy with it, he stopped. Walter looked at the clock.

"Oh, I've gotta go!" Walter said. He grabbed his wallet, phone, and keys off the bed, and looked once more in the mirror. "Well, let's go." Walter ran out of his room, heading straight for the door. He looked towards the framed photo of his father, across the room.

"Wish me luck, dad." Walter said, closing the door behind him.

Unsurprisingly, Walter was nervous for tonight. He had it all planned out, from beginning to end. He was gonna take her to the Melody Bar and Grill for dinner, and then a nice evening walk through Michael Juliano Grand Park. It was beautiful there at sundown and night.

Walter was picking Lily up at her apartment. He wanted to go to her door and pick her up like a gentleman would, but Lily insisted on just meeting him in the lobby. Walter forgot how persistent and impatient Lily was while growing up. Never likes to waist time, unless it's for a good reason. So Walter was fine meeting her in her lobby, as long as she was too.

When he got there, he waited for her in her lobby and texted her.

 _Downstairs. :)_

He waited, nervous. He really hoped this night would be planned out right. He used his camera phone mirror to make sure his hair was still nice.

"Don't worry, you've always had nice hair." Someone said. Walter looked up, and Lily was standing there. That was quick.

But boy, did she look great. She wore a tight black turtle neck, with a beige faux suede skirt. As well as cute black ankle boots, and a small grey shoulder purse thrown over her shoulder.

"Wow, you look..." Walter gazed at Lily's outfit. She was beautiful. Lily stood there, waiting for Walter to finish his sentence.

 _Say something!_ He thought to himself. "You look beautiful, Lily..." Walter finally said. In return, he received a flustered look from Lily, as she tried to hide the pure pink blush that appeared on her pale face.

"Thank you, Walter..." Lily responded. "You look amazing, too. I always thought you looked more grown up and handsome when you dress like that..."

Walter couldn't help but blush, too. Both of them were just prone to flushing red.

"Thanks, Lil." Walter smiled. "Come on, I have some great stuff planned." Walter held the apartment door open for Lily. She exited, and he followed behind.


	7. Chapter 7

Lily and Walter drove to their dinner destination, in a white rental car Walter got.

"I can't believe you got a rental car." Lily said. "Wasn't it expensive?"

"For a few hours? Nah." Walter responded. "Just ask Gary and Mary. We rented one for a few days when we came to L.A., originally."

"And little did Walter know, he'd end up staying in L.A. and becoming a part of the muppet family." Lily pretended to narrate, in a movie voice. Walter chuckled, amused by her humour. She was always like that while growing up. Besides going on and on about her plans to become famous when she was older, she's always had a humorous side to her.

Walter pulled up the car to a parking spot, and got out. He went to Lily's side to open her door, but she was already out.

"Don't worry. I can do it myself, thank you." She said, smirking. Walter smiled. Lily really wasn't like most girls.

"Well, this is the place." Walter said, thrusting his hand to the big restaurant in front of them. Lily looked up and read the sign; _Melody Bar and Grill._

"Oh! I've heard of this place! I was hoping to come here if I ever came to L.A. one day." Lily said, happily.

"Really? Oh, good. I was worried it wouldn't be enough."

Lily turned to Walter and held his shoulders. "Don't worry. I'm happy with anything you plan." Walter smiled, and they made their way into the restaurant.

Unfortunately, there was a big line. It was Friday night, after all. But, the wait wasn't so bad. What was nice about Walter and Lily knowing each other since they were 5 years old, was that they were comfortable talking about a lot of things.

When they got to the front of the front of the line, the waiter sorted them to a table, nearby the live music stage.

"This is literally amazing Walter." Lily said, leaning against the table as they looked through their menus. "I'm glad I get to have my first L.A. nightlife experience with you."

"I feel honoured." Walter humorously exaggerated, clutching his chest. Lily laughed in return. They looked back at their menus.

"What're you getting?" Walter asked.

"Not sure. It all looks great."

"Yeah, I don't I'd be able to pick if my life depended on it." Walter said still looking at his menu. To his surprise, Lily giggled slightly. Honestly, he wasn't being that funny. But, Lily seemed to like it. Guess she just thought he was really funny.

Or, maybe she just really liked him.

Walter blushed once again, and hid it with his menu. He really needed to get that under control.

Throughout their meal, Walter and Lily couldn't stop talking and laughing. The food was amazing, but took a long time to finish with all their chatting. They talked about today, telling each other's stories of their careers, and life in general. But what cracked them up the most, was talking about their childhood.

"Remember when a bunch of us went to Smalltown Falls on that really rainy Friday, during middle school?" Walter said.

"Yes! That was amazing, we climbed to the top of the hill. And then Parker slipped-"

"And went mud sliding down the hill!" The both said in unison. They laughed.

"I remember we went to Mindy's house afterwards. We spent hours playing video games in her basement." Walter reminisced.

"Elementary school and middle school was without a doubt, the cringe-like years of our school life." Lily smiled.

"Yeah. Looking back on it now, there's some things I wonder what kind of crazy mindset I had to have had, to done."

"Except, for discovering The Muppets." Lily said. Walter smiled.

"Yeah. I could only imaging how much different my life would be today, if I hadn't been a fan."

"They probably wouldn't be back together, and the studios would be teared down by that oil guy. The Muppets are really lucky to have found you."

"Well in this case, I found them." Walter chuckled. "I guess it was just always meant to be."

"Yeah." Lily agreed. "I think a part of you always knew that it's where you belong" Walter looked up at Lily.

"Exactly! Man, you get me." He said. Lily chuckled slightly, surprised from Walter all of a sudden saying that. Walter then realized that was a bit weird for a first date, and wanted to take it back.

"Ok, ladies and gentlemen. It's open mic night, so feel free." A musician spoke through the microphone, on the stage. Walter and Lily looked at the stage, and Lily looked back at Walter.

"We should do a duet." Lily said. Walter looked at her with wide eyes.

"Really?" He said. "Are you sure? We haven't sang together, in years."

"Well, if you're just as good as I remember, it shouldn't be a problem."

Walter's worrisome look relaxed, but not entirely. "Ok, which song...?"

Lily thought about it, and snapped up when she thought of one. "Do you still know the lyrics to Faithfully, by Journey?" She asked. Walter sat up in his chair. That was a good song. He remembers singing it over and over with Lily in high school.

"Yeah, like a reflex." Walter responded. Lily grinned.

"Well, what're we waiting for? It's open mic night! You remember our set up of the song, right?" She said.

"Yup." Walter said, now a bit more intrigued. Lily got up from her chair, and grabbed Walter by his arm. They went onto the mini stage.

"Looks like we've got some takers." The man said. He then perked up when he saw Walter.

"Well, I'll be gosh darned. Looks like we've got a special guest star tonight, folks. Walter from The Muppets!" People in the restaurant clapped and talked vigorously, all of a sudden shook to see a well-known up on stage.

Two people set up microphone stands for Lily and Walter. Walter told the man which music they wanted, and spoke into the microphone.

"Well, me and my good friend here have a classic. Hope you enjoy." Walter said. Everyone in the restaurant watched.

The music started, and Walter looked towards Lily. She was smiling, and the stage lights made her look like she was glowing. It's been so long since she's her her sing, he wondered if-

 _"Highway run_

 _Into the midnight sun_

 _Wheels go round and round_

 _You're on my mind"_ Lily's angelic voice sang.

Walter went into the next part.

 _"Restless hearts_

 _Sleep alone tonight_

 _Sending all my love_

 _Alone the wire"_

Both of them then sang in unison.

 _"And they say that the road_

 _Ain't no place to start a family_

 _Right down the line it's been you and me_

 _And lovin' a music man_

 _Ain't always what's suppose to be_

Walter:

 _Oh girl, you stand by me_

Lily:

 _I'm forever yours_

Both:

 _Faithfully_

Lily:

 _Circus life_

 _Under the big top world_

 _We all need the clowns_

 _To make us smile_

Walter:

 _Through space and time_

 _Always another show_

 _Wondering where I am_

 _Lost without_

Both:

 _And being apart_

 _Ain't easy on this love affair_

 _Two strangers learn to love again_

 _I get the joy of rediscovering you_

Walter:

 _Oh girl, you stand by me_

Lily:

 _I'm forever yours_

Both:

 _Faithfully_

As the instrumental went on, Walter and Lily couldn't help but look at each other. Walter felt his heart pound. Not out of nervousness, but happiness. It felt so good to sing with Lily. Their next part then came on.

Both:

 _Wooah, oh-oh-ooh_

Lily:

 _Faithfully_

 _I'm still yours_

Both:

 _I'm forever yours_

 _Ever yours_

 _Faithfully_

The two finished in perfect harmony, and the restaurant cheered. But they didn't notice, because they were so lost looking at each other. It not only felt so good to hear Lily's perfect voice hit the high notes, but to just sing with her felt like an honour. Her voice was absolutely beautiful, and should be treasured.

"Let's give it up for them again, folks!" The man said, as the rest of the audience continued to clap. Walter and Lily went back to their table, looking at each other the whole time.

"You've still got it." Lily said. "I thought so."

"Oh come on, I can't compare to you." Walter responded. "I mean, you're amazing."

"Let's just call it even." Lily chuckled. Walter smiled and nodded in return. Lily leaned her arms against the table, looking at Walter.

"So, what's next?" She asked. The waiter came over and put the bill on the table.

"Well first, I'm gonna pay." Walter said reaching for it.

"No, don't be ridiculous." Lily said, taking the cheque out of his hand. "You're planning this whole night. The least I could do is pay."

"Please, don't worry about it."

"No, I insist."

Walter didn't say anything, and just looked at Lily with exhaustion. "Can we not be generous, and just let one of us pay?"

"Oh my gosh, YES. I hate these situations!" Lily said. Walter laughed.

"How 'bout splitting it?" Walter suggested. Lily smiled.

"That works." She said. "And after splitting it...?" Lily played with her hair. Walter swallowed, running his hand through his hair too.

"Well, I thought we could take a walk through Michael Juliano Grand Park. It's suppose to be beautiful there at night." He responded, nervously.

Lily looked at him, with soft eyes. "That would be great."

The two left the restaurant, and went back to the rental car. When they were outside, it was dark. They didn't realize how much time had passed while they were in there.

"Wow, time flies." Walter said. Lily nodded in agreement.

"Guess it happens when you have a good time..." Lily said, getting a funny smile from Walter.

They took the rental car, and drove to the park. As they went there, Lily rolled down the window. Walter nearly lost control of the car, watching the wind blow fast through Lily's hair. It was like a scene straight out of a romantic movie. Walter also turned on the radio, and both of them sang along as they drove. They couldn't get enough from spending time together. It's only been a night, but one incredible one.

At the park, Lily linked her arm with Walter, and he accepted. The night lights were beautiful, and it was so peaceful. They didn't talk for a while, but it wasn't awkward. They really enjoyed each other's company. When they got to the big lit up fountain, they sat on a bench. Just...watching. They still had their arms linked, and Walter felt Lily lean her head on Walter's shoulder. He rested his head back on her's, still watching the fountain.

"Walter?" Her voice said, softly. Walter lifted his head to look at her.

"Yes...?" He responded, quietly.

"I had... a really good time, tonight." She said, her eye's sparkling.

"G-good, I'm really glad..." Walter practically whispered. They didn't stop staring, and were a bit startled on how close their faces were. Walter felt Lily's breath linger against his face. He breathed heavily, too.

"I, uh..." Walter couldn't talk. He was too intrigued as to what was going on. As soon as Walter saw Lily began to inch her face forward, he felt his heart beat like one of Animal's drum solos. He hesitated when she did so, allowing her to slow down, thinking he didn't want to. But, he moved his face forward as well, to assure her he did.

The two were nearly apart, Walter felt Lily's grip on his arm become tighter. Before anything could happen, a huge thunder crash interrupted them. The two of the shot apart and looked up at the sky. Big fat rain drops came down at fast speed.

"Oh, no! I forgot to check tonight's weather!" Walter yelled over the sound of the rain. The two of them were already soaked.

"No, no, don't worry!" Lily yelled back, laughing. "It's just like a movie scene, the two people get stuck in the rain on a beautiful night!"

"Come on, my apartment is close by! We can take the car there!" Walter grabbed Lily's hand, and the two ran through the rain. Though some may not have enjoyed it, they couldn't stop laughing. They were always gonna be the same kids that knew each other, on the inside.

They were soaked, but didn't care. They got to the rental car and jumped in.

"What a rush, huh?" Lily said, her hair dripping on all over her skirt. "Oh man..."

"Don't worry, I've got towels at my place." Walter said, starting the car.

They took off, the night not over yet.


	8. Chapter 8

Walter was lucky to have found parking closer to his apartment. Thankfully, he didn't have to return the car until tomorrow. The two youngsters ran out of the car, and into the building.

"Can't remember the last time that happened..." Lily said, as Walter jiggled his keys in the door of his flat.

"Ya, me neither." Walter said, opening it. They went inside, and Walter threw his keys into the key bowl.

"Wow, really nice place." Lily said.

"Thanks, you can sit if you want. I'll go get some towels." Walter left the room, to go get what he needed. Lily took off her wet boots, and went to the living room. She looked at the huge window view, just in time for Walter to get back.

"Gorgeous view..." She said, as Walter put the pile of folded towels down on the coffee table.

"Yeah, I know. Best part about this place..."

Lily put down her shoulder bag, and picked up a towel. She used it to dry her dripping hair, gently. Walter watched, unaware he was staring. Lily looked at him.

"Are you okay...?" She asked. Walter snapped out of it.

"Oh uh, yeah! I'm fine. I think I got some rain water in my eyes." Walter picked up a towel, and dabbed dried his hair, face, and neck. He took off his wet black sweater, and put it on the towel.

"You could just leave them there. I'll clean up, later." Walter said, brushing the water off his white shirt. "Can I get you anything?"

"No, I'm okay. Thanks." Lily said. The two of them sat on the couch. Lily looked around, and saw the framed photo of Walter's dad.

"Nice photo of him..." She said. Walter looked at it too, and nodded.

"Yeah, he could never take a bad picture. I keep a nicer quality one in my wallet."

Lily looked towards him. "Really? Can I see it?" Walter hesitated, but did so. He took out the wallet that he's had for a long time. It was old and worn out. He flipped it open, and easily took out the same, yet smaller picture of his dad.

Lily looked at it. It was the same photo, but she was intrigued as to what was written on the back.

"What's on the back?" She asked. Walter turned the photo. On the back, in thick writing it said:

 _Never stop fighting for what you love, Walter._

 _Love, dad._

Walter felt his heart throb a bit, at his father's writing. He looked up at Lily.

"I got it from him a few months before he...died." Walter said, not hesitating on the words this time. Lily put her hand on Walter's.

"He was a good man." Lily told him.

"Yeah..." Walter responded, putting the photo back in his wallet and putting it on the table.

"I see him in you..." Lily said. Walter shrugged at her comment.

"I don't know, maybe..." He said, looking up at her.

"No, I really do." She said. "It's in your eyes..."

Walter lingered his stare at her for a while, then broke it. He looked at his wallet that sat on the table.

"Sometimes I worry that I'm gonna lose it..." He said. "It's not a sturdy wallet. So, I check to make sure the photo is still in there."

"What about your cards...?"

"Well, those too. But, that photo means a lot to me."

Lily stayed quiet, her hand was still on Walter's. She felt like she made things awkward.

"Maybe it's about time you got a new one...? T-to keep your photo safe, that is." Lily suggested. Walter looked back at her.

"Yeah, if I have the time." Walter said. The boy looked back at Lily, her eyes glued to him. He stared into them, swearing he was staring into a beautiful gems."

"Lily...?"

"Hm..?"

"I just wanted to say, I think you're really talented...like star-worthy talent..."

Lily tilted her head, slightly. She carefully took Walter's other hand in both of hers. They were now holding each other's hands, and were looking right at one another. Nothing was gonna stop them, now.

Walter was actually the first to lean in, a bit too quickly. Lily shifted away, a bit surprised. Walter took notice to this.

"Oh sorry, I-" But before he could finish his sentence, Lily crashed her lips against his. Walter eye's grew wide open, and he swore that his heart was gonna fly out of his chest. It beat so fast, Lily could feel it. She gently pressed her hand against where his heart was, letting him calm down. Walter then began to kiss back, and his eyes fell closed.

They continued to kiss, feeling filled with life. Walter felt like he could fly. It was all happening so suddenly, but he enjoyed it so much. Eventually, it had to end so they could breathe. Walter didn't want it to, but he was out of breath.

The two of them breathed heavily, trying to fill their lungs in with the air they needed. When both their breathing was steady, Lily spoke.

"Well, I certainly didn't think that of you when I was five years old." She said, stroking his hand with her thumb. Walter chuckled, and gently brushed her bangs out of her face.

"Neither did I. But for what it's worth, I'm glad this is happening..."

Lily arched an eyebrow. "Calm down cowboy, it's only our first date." She laughed.

"Hey, you kissed me first." Walter pouted. Lily giggled and kissed him on his cheek. Walter blushed, allured.

"It's still raining. Would you mind driving me home?" She asked.

"Not at all." He said.

The two walked to the door, as Walter grabbed an umbrella. They walked out the door, Walter's arm around Lily.

* * *

On Sunday morning, Kermit sat in the living room of his and Miss Piggy's mansion. He was in his robe, sitting on the couch and drinking his coffee. He was trying to relax. This week, they were having a real show since the telethon. The tour didn't count since one, Kermit wasn't there. And two, it was a rigged tour.

The frog was nervous, but was trying to calm down. Miss Piggy told him that he needs to relax more, and not always be worrying. But, that was easy for her to say. Jim Henson built a huge foundation, and chose Kermit as his apprentice when the frog was young. He's been working almost his whole life, except for when The Muppets had split up.

Kermit thought he was making good progress, though. He didn't feel too tense, and was actually feeling in a peaceful place. 80s Robot then entered the room, carrying a newspaper.

"The Sunday paper, Mr. Kermit." 80s Robot said in his robotic voice, handing the paper to Kermit.

"Thank you, 80s Robot." Kermit said, taking the newspaper out of the robot's claw. 80s Robot left just in time for Miss Piggy to come in with her tea and a French Vogue magazine. She sat on a chair and put her tea down. She flipped through the magazine.

"Hm, they've really gone down since I left. No surprise." Piggy said, looking at the company she use to be a part of. She continued to read through it.

As Kermit lifted the newspaper to read it, he took a sip of his coffee. He immediately coughed it back into his mug however, when he saw what was on the front cover.

"Oh my goodness." Kermit said, putting his mug down. His gaze was still on the cover of the paper. By this point, Piggy was looking at the frog.

"Kermie, what is it?" She asked. Kermit turned the paper to Miss Piggy.

"Walter is on the cover of the Los Angeles Times, by himself!" Miss Piggy shot out of her seat, and went to sit by Kermit. She looked more carefully at the paper.

"Kermie, you're right! But, he's not alone. He's with a girl!"

It was true. There was a picture of Walter standing with a girl on a miniature stage. They both held a mic, and were smiling sweetly at each other.

"The Muppets' youngest newcomer, Walter, was spotted Friday night at the live music watering hole, Melody Bar and Grill. The young Muppet was as well not alone, and was found with a mystery girl. The press were unaware as to who she was, but came to the conclusion that the two were on a romantic outing." Kermit read the headline article out loud, as Piggy looked over his shoulder.

"That must be Lily!" Miss Piggy squealed. "Oh, she's so cute!"

Kermit passed the newspaper to Piggy and ran out of the living room.

"80s Robot, where's my phone?" Kermit's voice echoed through the hall. "I have to call Fozzie."

* * *

Meanwhile, in Walter's apartment. The boy was in his pyjamas, as well. He whistled, and went to the door to get his newspaper. He opened it, picked it up, and closef the door behind him.

Walter looked at the cover as he took sip of his coffee. He immediately spat it out, when he saw what was on it. Spilt coffee now on his floor.

He was on the paper with Lily. The front cover. Walter did not expect that. He hasn't been famous for that long, and is already the apple of the paparazzi's eye. He didn't panic, it was just an article of the two of them at a restaurant. It's nothing bad.

Until he remembered that every single Muppet read the newspaper.

"Uh, oh." Walter said. He didn't know what to do. He couldn't call any of them, because they probably already saw it. And besides, this was gonna come out eventually. However, it still worried Walter.

Walter grabbed his smart phone, and called Lily.

"Hey, Walter." Lily said, answering.

"Did you see the paper?" He asked.

"I'm looking at it, right now. Pretty insane, right?"

"Does it bother you...?" Walter asked, not hearing too much worry.

"Well, it's not like it's anything bad. I mean, I didn't want to get publicized until I started working. But, as long as I don't have a bad reputation, I think I'll be okay."

Walter smiled. "That's very mature..." He didn't hear a response from Lily. "Lily?"

"You're freaking out about it, aren't you?" She asked.

"Not necessarily freaking out...but I'm worried."

"Why?"

Walter stayed quiet.

"Walter...?" The Muppet still hesitated, not responding.

"Walter, you didn't tell your friends about me yet, have you?"

"I just, didn't want to jinx it." Walter finally spoke. "I was so excited about you coming to L.A., and I was even more excited about our date. I didn't want to get my hopes up that everything was gonna be awesome with you, by telling them. They aren't just my idols, anymore. They've been trying hard to be a family for me, and I really appreciate it. I'm sorry I-

"Walter." Lily interrupted. "It's okay. Take a breath." Walter did as told.

"Considering how good of a time I had the other night, I don't think you have to worry about things getting ruined." Lily said, allowing Walter to relax.

"You know, I'm gonna be busy all week. I'm meeting with a lot of casting directors. But, I'm free today..." Lily said.

Walter arched his brows. "What did you have in mind?"

"Maybe there's a brunch place we can go to? Somewhere the press won't find us?" She asked.

"Sure, I can eat. Secretively." Walter said, shrugging his shoulders. He heard Lily laugh at the other end, making him smile. The two of them sorted out a place and time, and ended the phone call.

Walter got ready for his brunch date. But, his mind was still on the other Muppets seeing the article. And what was gonna come of it on Monday.


	9. Chapter 9

The news about Walter frequently dating Lily spread around the Muppet family like wildfire. As well as the public eye. Articles came pouring in, many titled with questions on who Walter's new girl was. He and Lily of course, didn't want to be too open to the press about it yet. But, Walter was going to with the Muppets now. Monday ended up being what he expected, a huge wave of questions being thrown at him.

"How did you guys meet?" Rowlf asked. Walter sat in the house seats of the Muppet auditorium. Rowlf, Scooter, Fozzie, Gonzo, and Miss Piggy sat there, all looking at him with excitement. Kermit sat there too, interested in what Walter had to say. But, also for another reason. After the article came out, Kermit told some of the others not to come on to Walter too abruptly with their curiosity. He sat there to make sure they kept it that way.

"We grew up together back home." Walter responded to Rowlf, "she moved in across the street when we were kids."

"Aw, a childhood blossomed into a romance." Miss Piggy said, adoringly.

"She moved from your town to L.A.?" Fozzie asked.

"No, after we graduated she went to college in New York. She's lived there since. She's only been here for a while." Walter said. On the outside, Walter seemed pretty calm with them. But, he was pretty nervous. It was nerve racking telling them all about his new found relationship.

"Well, tell us more! What did she study in New York?" Gonzo asked.

"Musical theatre." The boy responded. He saw their eyes light up, suddenly a lot more intrigued that Lily was also an artist like them. "Yeah, she's a great singer. She moved here to pursue acting."

"A girl after my own heart." Piggy said, "probably inspired by moi."

"So I'm sure you guys get along fine, if you grew up together." Scooter said.

"Yeah, we really do. But, it's still taking some getting use to." Walter said.

"What do you mean?"

Walter shrugged his shoulders."I don't know. I mean, how often do friends...get together?"

"Well, that happened with me and Estelle." Fozzie said. The friends looked towards him.

"Fozzie, who's Estelle?" Kermit asked. Fozzie looked towards the frog.

"You know, that pretty blonde bear I dated when we were younger!" Fozzie said.

"Oh yeah, I remember her." Gonzo said.

"Yeah, we were friends before. Then after a while, it didn't work out because of it."

Walter pressed his lips firmly together and leaned forward off his chair, uncomfortably. Kermit noticed Walter's sudden change in tone and cleared his throat. He hoped to get Fozzie to stop, but it didn't work

"But, she really wanted all this marriage stuff." Fozzie continued, Kermit saw Walter relax. If that was the reason, Walter was fine with it. Until Piggy said something else.

"Oh! Speaking of marriage, I just thought of the cutest wedding gift for you and Lily!" She said to Walter. Walter tensed up again, and felt his face go hot. Kermit looked at his partner.

"Piggy..." He tried to keep things down low, but once again the frog wasn't heard.

"Maybe you guys could do like a double wedding with your brother." Rowlf laughed. Walter swallowed, starting to flush pure red.

"We've only been on two dates, guys..." Walter said, nervously.

"Yea, but you could still borrow your brother's tux when he's done with it." Fozzie said.

"Guys-" Kermit could barely start a sentence, without getting cut off.

"His brother's tux would be way too big for him." Gonzo said. "He could borrow my vintage one."

"That suit is older than Walter is. He should get married wearing something new." Scooter intervened.

"I call officiating Walter's wedding!" Fozzie said, raising his paw.

"No way, I'm gonna do it!" Gonzo said.

"Guys, I'm not even getting...married..." Walter said, hesitating on the last word.

"Ouh! Besides the wedding, your children would be adorable!" Piggy said. Walter's mouth dropped right open, freaked. The young Muppet ran his hand through his hair, his heart beating fast. That was definitely NOT something he was thinking about.

"Good grief..." Kermit said.

"Of course they would," Rowlf said. "They're both good-looking. Those would be some attractive kids."

Gonzo looked at Walter, who was still blushing. "Better have them soon. You two won't be young, forever."

"OKAY." Walter bursted out, jumping to his feet. His friends looked at him, startled. Walter realized he had stopped acting calm. He couldn't get out of this one.

"Uh..." Walter tried to look for words. "I think I need some air..." Walter scooted out of the seats, and quickly walked to the lobby. When he was out of the auditorium, Kermit sighed and looked towards the others.

"Did we say something...?" Fozzie asked. Kermit shook his head.

"Guys, Walter is young. I think...you freaked him out."

"Yea, but you and Piggy married young. You were only a bit older than Walter, how's that different?" Gonzo said.

"Well, we were sure about it. I think Walter knows that something like that is too...vast for him."

"Sorry chief, we didn't mean to scare him..." Scooter said. "We weren't trying to be serious."

"Except for the part about their kids being attractive." Rowlf said. "Cause they really would be."

The frog shook his head, again. "Well, how should we calm him down?"

"Kermie, you should go talk to him..." Piggy said.

Kermit looked at her. "Really, Piggy?"

"Yeah, Kermit." Gonzo said. "If you can give a huge leadership speech every so often on the fly, I think you could calm him down." Kermit nodded and got up. Without another word, he started to walk to the lobby.

Meanwhile outside the theatre, Walter tried to calm himself down. He was really freaked out by all that talk of Fozzie and Estelle splitting up. Or even worse, the jokes about the wedding and having kids. They may have been kidding, but it still got to Walter.

Walter hyperventilated into a brown paper bag. He breathed in and out, the paper bag retracting and inflating. He continued to breath into it, rapidly. His heart beat extremely fast, his head feeling faint. He needed to stop before he got too light headed. But, his heart was beating so fast that he wanted to keep going.

Walter continued to breath fast, until he felt a hand quickly and unexpectedly go on his back.

"Woah, woah. Walter, calm down." Kermit said. Walter didn't look at the frog, he kept breathing into the bag. After the paper bag retracted from Walter's breathing for the millionth time, Kermit took it away. Walter still hyperventilated, his breathing no longer muffled by the crumpling of the bag.

"Slow it down..." Kermit advised. Walter still breathed stiffly, but felt his heart slow down. The two sat down on the steps of one of the doors to the theatre. Walter took a few more steady breaths before speaking.

"Sorry..." Walter said.

"No, no its okay." Kermit said. "They sometimes...say things without realizing. Thats what they did when Piggy and I started dating."

Walter tensed up, and Kermit realized that that was probably not the best example.

"Maybe I shouldn't have started with that." The frog said.

"Y-yea. Cause...that only says that Lily and I are gonna end up spending that much time together. And Gonzo is right, w-we're not getting any younger...! So it'll have to happen some d-day, right?"

"Okay, okay." Kermit tried to keep Walter calm. "You guys can have the chance of many years together, ahead. You've only just started seeing each other, you have nothing to worry about."

"But what about all that stuff that Fozzie said about him and Estelle? About being friends before, and then not after they ended things?"

Kermit shook his head. "Unless Lily is anything like Estelle was, I think you guys will be okay."

"But, what if we aren't?" Walter asked. "I mean, we've literally known each other since we were five. If it didn't work out, I'd hate to mess that up."

Kermit sighed. "Well...I know this may be a big question since you've only been on two dates. But, do you like her?"

Walter hesitated. He ran his hand through his hair, not sure how to answer. Guess there was only one way to. Honestly.

"Yeah." Walter smiled, "I really do."

"Hm." Kermit spoke, nodding. "Well, I don't think you need to worry about anything."

Walter nodded. "Thanks." His leader nodded in response, glad he had calm down. Before the frog could respond, someone interrupted.

"Walter?" A girl's voice said. The two Muppets lifted their gaze. Lily stood there, her shoulder bag dangling from her shoulder. Her hands were clasped, uncomfortably. Walter remembered that he was meeting up with Lily after rehearsal.

"Are you okay?" Lily asked. Walter jumped to his feet, and went over to Lily.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Don't worry." Walter said, reassuring her. "Sorry, I was suppose to call you."

"Don't worry, I was gonna text you that I was outside." Lily said, not at all mad. Walter relaxed. He then noticed his date slightly peer her gaze over Walter's shoulder. Right, Kermit was still there. Walter turned around, and the frog was now standing as well.

"Uh, this is Lily." Walter said to him, he looked back at Lily. "Lily, this is-"

"I think I can guess." Lily smiled. Kermit smiled, too.

"Nice to meet you in person, rather than on a newspaper." Kermit said. Lily blushed slightly through her pale skin. It was nerve racking all of a sudden being in front of someone she watched on tv while growing up.

"I guess everyone saw that pretty quickly." She said, thinking about the article. She looked back at Walter. "How did they react?"

"With a mob of questions." Walter said. Lily noticed a tone of nervousness in Walter's voice. She arched an eyebrow.

"So uh, is there a reason you were randomly sitting outside...?" Lily asked. Walter cleared his throat, trying to think of something. He didn't want her to know that he was freaking out over the idea of commitment in their relationship.

Walter cleared his throat. "Well...uh..."

"Just discussing for Friday's show." Kermit intervened. "Thought we'd get some air." Walter looked at the frog, who gave him a subtle nod. Kermit has been together with a pig who doesn't try to let anything get by her, for a long time. He knew this stuff. Walter felt relieved. Maybe his friends finding out about Lily was better than he thought.

"Yea, that's what we were doing." Walter agreed, looking at Lily.

Lily didn't feel totally convinced, but she went with it. The three continued to talk and Kermit got to know Lily a bit more. After a while, Walter pulled his phone out of his pocket and pulled his wallet out accidentally too. He checked the time.

"Hey, we should get going. We're gonna be late." Walter said.

They both said bye to Kermit and the two began to walk off. As Walter put his wallet in his back pocket, a little white piece of paper flew out. Walter didn't notice, but Kermit did. The frog walked over and picked it up.

"Hey Walter, you dropped something." Kermit wanted to tell Walter that something fell out of his wallet, but they were already gone. Before Kermit could get a look at what Walter dropped, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Fozzie, Scooter, and Rowlf came out of the theatre.

"She seems so sweet!" Piggy said, as they walked up to Kermit.

"Were you guys spying?" Kermit asked, startled.

"Only for like the second half of it all." Fozzie admitted. Kermit played with the glossy paper in his hands.

"What's that?" Gonzo asked.

"Oh, uh nothing." Kermit said, shrugging it off. They all began to walk back into the theatre, Kermit staying behind a bit. He lifted the paper to look at it.

It was a picture of a man dressed in a U.S. Marine Corps uniform. Kermit flipped the picture, and saw writing on the back.

It read:

 _Never stop fighting for what you love, Walter._

 _Love, dad._

Kermit's frog eyes widened a bit as he looked at the writing. He flipped it back to the picture of the man, realizing who it was.

"This is-"

"Kermieee! Are you coming?" Piggy chanted from the door. Kermit looked up from the photo and walked back to the theatre.

* * *

Kermit sat in his office, looking at the photo that sat on his desk. Not just any photo, a photo of Walter's father. He had no idea his father was in the Marines. But the real question was, was he still...alive?

Kermit sighed, that was probably something he shouldn't be going around asking. But, he should probably call Walter and tell him he had it. That, and there was something else important he needed to ask him.

The frog picked up the office phone, and dialled Walter's cell number.

When Walter picked up the phone, he sounded frantic

"Kermit?"

"Hey Walter." The frog cleared his throat. "Sorry to interrupt. Are you uh, okay?"

"Uh, not really. Listen, I'm sorry but I don't think I can talk. I lost something really important and I can't find-"

"Is it a photo?" Kermit asked. It was silent for a second on the other end.

"Do...do you have it...?" Walter's voice said.

"I'm looking at it right now."

Walter calmed down, and kept talking. "Oh, okay. Can you just...hold onto it until I get it back?" The boy sounded nervous. Clearly, this wasn't something he was open about. Kermit picked up the photo.

"Absolutely." The frog reassured him. "Actually Walter, there's another reason I called."

"What is it?"

Kermit cleared his throat. "Well, I'm not sure what to call it. It's just sort of an...evaluation question."

"Evaluation question...?"

"Um." Kermit tried to look for a reason. "Just something we do with new Muppets. You know, since you just joined." The frog was lying. That wasn't at all what it was. But, he couldn't tell Walter what he was thinking. Not yet.

"Uh, okay."

"It's just a simple question." Kermit leaned forward on his desk.

"Okay..." Walter said, sort of skeptical.

"Walter," Kermit began. "When it comes to leading a group that's a family, like ours, what do you think is the most important thing to keep true to?"

Walter felt a bit perplexed. It wasn't like Kermit to just randomly call someone up and ask a very specific question like that. Walter was still new to being a Muppet, though. Maybe that's just how they do things behind the scenes.

"Well," Walter began. "I think it's important to not put your interests in front of everybody else's, and instead consider what is right for the group. You know...a good leader isn't about showing what you can provide, but doing what's right."

Kermit nodded. That answer was perfect.

"Is that a Muppet enough way to answer?" Walter asked. Kermit chuckled.

"Yeah, that's perfect. Thanks Walter, that's all I needed. And don't worry, I'll keep your photo safe."

"Ok, no problem. And...thanks."

The two hung up, and Kermit was all of a sudden in motion. It was time. Time to tell some others what he had been thinking about for a while. He thought about the phone call he had with Dr. Teeth a few weeks ago, when he nearly told him about a job position he wanted to offer Walter.

Just then, Scooter entered.

"You wanted to see me, chief?" The stage manager asked.

"Yes, Scooter. Are Piggy, Gonzo, Fozzie, and Rowlf still in the theatre?"

"They're just about to leave, should I go get them?"

"Yes, please. But only them, and you. This is really important."

Scooter looked at his boss, a bit surprised by the seriousness in his voice. "Right away, chief."

As soon as Scooter left, Kermit put the photo of Walter's dad in one of his desk drawers. He went over to a file cabinet, and pulled it open. A cloud of dust went his face, allowing him to cough. Kermit looked through it, until he found what he needed. The frog sat back at his desk, looking at the old paper.

Kermit looked up at a picture in his office of Jim Henson.

"I think it's time, Jim..."


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey! Before you read this chapter, I noticed that chapter 7 had an unnatural lack of views on it, (probably because I posted two chapter that day) and I don't want people to brush over anything and miss some stuff. So if you missed chapter 7, go read it! Enjoy!**

* * *

Kermit looked at the document in front of him. He still sat at his desk, waiting for Scooter to come back with some of the others. Kermit had been thinking and overthinking a huge concept for a while, now. He thought over it so much, because it was a huge deal. But before he could move forward with it, he needed some others' approval.

Scooter then entered, with Miss Piggy, Fozzie, Gonzo, and Rowlf following him.

"Here we are, chief." Scooter said.

"Kermie, is this important?" Piggy asked. "I have a hair appointment in twenty minutes."

"Well Piggy, you might need to reschedule." The frog said. "This could take a while. It actually is really important."

"What is it, Kermit?" Fozzie asked. Kermit cleared his throat.

"Everyone, take a seat." He said with seriousness in his voice. The few Muppets grabbed a seat and sat in front of Kermit's desk.

"Well gee, Kermit. Is there something wrong?" Rowlf asked.

"No, not exactly." Kermit started. "I asked you all to be here, because I trust your opinions. Also, what we are going to discuss needs to be on the down-low for a while. Until it is certain. That means only you guys know, and no one else."

"Did something happen?" Gonzo asked.

"No, nothing happened Gonzo." Kermit said. The frog leaned against his desk, looking at all of them. He lifted the paper and showed it them. They looked at it carefully, and realized what it was.

"Kermit, is that...?" Scooter started.

"Yes." The frog finished. He put the document down on his desk, again. "It's the contract I signed years ago, when The Muppet Show was being launched. Signing this, I agreed to be the leader of the Muppets, under the foundation that Jim Henson built for us. As well as submitting to an apprenticeship from Jim."

Rowlf walked over, and picked up the document. "Was there a leak in the contract, or something?"

"No, there wasn't a leak." Kermit reassured him. "Guys, I'm not gonna be around forever. And neither are any of you. Like you said Gonzo, no one is getting any younger."

His friends didn't say anything. They just continued to listen carefully.

"I know that we are still gonna be around for years. We're not going anywhere for a long, long time. But eventually, the Muppets are gonna need a new heir."

Kermit looked towards the picture of Jim. "As Jim would probably say, I'll eventually have to pass the torch to someone else. Someone younger, and a qualified leader."

Fozzie tilted his head. "Were you thinking of someone specific, Kermit?"

Kermit nodded. "Yes, Fozzie." The frog looked at them all, suspense on their faces. They were waiting for an answer.

The frog took a breath, before telling them. "I want Walter to be my apprentice."

Kermit's friends all gaped at him with surprise. Kermit was picking Walter as the future leader. That's a such a huge revelation, that they didn't even know how to react.

"Wow, Kermit..." Scooter spoke first, not knowing what else to say. "Did you ask him, yet?"

"No, I haven't." Kermit said. "That's why I gathered all of you."

Miss Piggy sat up in her seat. "We're listening, Kermie."

Kermit nodded, and continued. "Guys when I met Walter, I knew he was a true Muppet by heart. Not just from his amazing persona, but also his determination to keep the Muppets alive. And as we got to know him, I saw the real leader that he really is."

"Well, he was the one to figure out Constantine replaced you." Gonzo intervened.

"He helped save the telethon." Scooter said.

"And he's the whole reason we got back together in the first place." Kermit finished.

Rowlf nodded. "Jim would have liked Walter."

Kermit looked back the photo of Jim. "Yeah, he really would." The leader snapped back into their discussion.

"I've thought about this for a while, and now I'm certain." Kermit cleared his throat. "Walter is the future of the Muppets."

His friends all nodded, making Kermit feel relieved. He gathered them to make sure he was making the right decision. If they all agreed, he was sure Jim would, too.

"When I was Walter's age, Jim told me that one day I would have to pick an apprentice of my own." The frog explained. "To pass on the leading title to another generation. I wasn't sure how I would know who, but Jim assured me that I just would. He was right, because I do know."

Kermit hesitated for a second, before continuing to speak. "And when Jim got really sick..."

Everyone in the room tensed up.

"He told me to pass on what he had taught me and a lot more to the next heir." Kermit nodded, feeling a bit more determined. "And that's what I intend to do for Walter."

"I know that you can teach everything Jim taught you to Walter, but what did he mean by 'a lot more?'" Scooter asked.

Kermit shrugged. "I'm not sure. I think maybe giving Walter the apprenticeship in advance? When Jim hired me, I learned everything as the show went on. I'm giving the chance to let Walter be taught years in advance, before he is put in charge."

"So, what do you need us for...?" Gonzo asked, his voice sort of quiet.

"I don't plan on telling Walter this for a while. Not until we've planned it through, and have built a sturdy foundation. I chose to tell you five, because I trust your instincts."

His friends all nodded.

"I'm officially making this a committee. We'll call it...the Jim Henson Committee."

"JHC." Rowlf abbreviated.

"And until this is brought up with anyone else, we don't tell anyone." Kermit said, firmly. "None of the other Muppets, definitely no press, and no one tells Walter."

Gonzo looked towards Fozzie. "That means you, fury boy."

Fozzie looked at Gonzo. "What am I gonna do?"

"You spill secrets way too easily!" Piggy said. "Especially to the press."

"Yeah, remember when you told the paparazzi that shoplifting rumour about Miss Piggy?" Scooter said.

"I forgot about that!" Piggy said, starting to shake with anger.

"Guys, guys!" Kermit said, trying not to start a weird fight. "Can we please focus? Just, no one tell anyone about it. Especially Walter. This is all about him, anyway."

"Kermit?" Fozzie asked. "What about Lily?"

Kermit hesitated, he sort of forgot about her for a second. "What about her?"

"I mean none of us have really met her except you, but what if she..." Fozzie drifted off.

"What if she what, Fozzie?" Kermit asked. Fozzie looked back at the frog.

"Sorry, there was a fly. I got distracted. What was I just saying...?"

Kermit sighed, and shook his head."Don't worry, I don't think whatever it was about her would be a problem."

"I don't know, Kermit." Gonzo said. "I mean, Walter was so distracted with texting her and just being with her. Maybe she might distract him from wanting this job."

The frog looked at his friend, unconvinced. "Gonzo, that's ridiculous. They just started a relationship, of course they always want to see each other."

"But she use to live in New York, right?" The Muppet continued, "what if she moves back, and Walter wants to follow her?"

"Guys, don't worry." Kermit assured them. "Have you met Walter? I don't think he'd give up on the Muppets so easily. Also, Lily moved to L.A. for a reason. You really think she'd want to move back across the country, again?"

"Well, maybe not." Rowlf stepped in. "But if Walter really likes her, she'll probably be around a lot. If this is a huge thing for Walter to take on, you'll probably want his full-time attention, Kermit."

Kermit picked up the contract and slipped it into his desk drawer where Walter's photo of his dad still was. "Well Rowlf, that's not up for us to control. If Walter's happy with Lily, we shouldn't be concerned. I'm not worried, she's a nice girl."

His friends nodded, willingly listening to their leader.

"Okay, so what's next?" Scooter asked.

"I'll call a new meeting soon." Kermit said. "More importantly, I'm gonna get a new version of the contract made. One that's specified to Walter agreeing to an apprenticeship with me. When I have it, you guys can look it over and tell me if there's any concerns."

"Got it, Kermit." Rowlf said. The rest started to pile out of the office, but Miss Piggy stayed behind. She looked towards Kermit, his gaze dropped down to his note pad. He was distracted, writing some notes.

Miss Piggy walked up to is desk. "Kermie? Are you okay?"

Kermit looked up from his notes, and put his pen down. "Yeah, I'm okay Piggy..."

"Are you sure?"

Kermit tilted his head, uncertain. "I mean, this isn't too fast is it? Is it too much to put on Walter?"

Piggy sighed, not sure how to answer. "I don't know. But, you can always give him time to think..." She reached out and held Kermit's hand. Kermit smiled.

"Thanks, Piggy..." He held her hand back, and looked back at the photo of Jim. "I think Jim would agree that this is the right decision."

* * *

"That was when I fell off my bike." Walter said, looking through a photo album. Him and Lily sat on Lily's couch, in her apartment. They were looking through old photos from when they were kids.

"How old were you then?" Lily asked, looking at the album Walter was holding. She clasped her arm onto his, sitting closer to him.

"I think maybe eight. I remember, because this was a few weeks before I turned nine. I had that scab on my knee for a long time." Walter reminisced. Lily chuckled warmly, and leaned her head against Walter's. Walter accepted her affectionate action, and leaned his head too.

"Do you want more to drink?" Lily asked.

"Sure." Walter responded. Lily picked up their two glasses from the coffee table, and went to her kitchen. While she was in there, Walter continued to look through the album, seeing a bunch of old photos he recognized. He then felt his phone buzz in his back pocket, and he picked it up.

 _Guess who._ The text wrote. It was from a unknown number. Walter looked at the text with uncertainty, and wrote back.

 _Sorry, I think you have the wrong number._

"Do you want more ice?" Lily called from her kitchen. Walter looked towards where she called down the hall, and back at his phone.

 _Actually, I don't._ The unknown number said back.

"Walter? Do you want more ice...?" Lily continued to call.

"Uh...yes please, Lil!" Walter said, not taking his eyes off his phone.

 _Who is this?_ He texted, feeling worried. There was no response for a while. Walter kept shifting his head from his phone to the living room entrance, waiting for Lily to walk in. If she saw the frantic look on his face, she would know something was up.

 _Doesn't matter. See ya, kid._ The unkown texted, just in time for Lily to come back.

"Everything okay?" She asked, setting their glasses down on the table. She sat next to Walter.

"Yup, just...texting Gary." Walter lied. He didn't know who or what those texts were. But, he wasn't gonna be concerned with it now. Him and Lily continued to talk, and just be happy.

 _Probably just a mistake._ Walter thought to himself.

* * *

One of the evil escaped men from the Gulag put his phone in his back pocket. The two men were in a dark room of a cabin, waiting for what they ordered.

"Don't mess with the boy's head, too much." One of the men said, with a thick Russian accent. "We don't want him to expect us."

"Don't worry."The other reassured. "He couldn't even guess who I was."

Just then, the cabin door opened. Another shady looking man entered, wearing a trench coat. He didn't speak a word, and merely just walked up to the men. He gave them both a dirty look.

"Payment, first." He said. One of the men gave a snarl, and threw him the wad of cash and cigars.

"Now, our part of the bargain." One of the prisoners said, walking up to him. The man with the trench coat reached into his big pocket and pulled out an envelope.

"Fake IDs, Passports, and American money. Enough to get you where you want to go." He tossed the envelope at them, and they looked inside. Yep, it was all there.

"Perfect." One said. "Now get out of here before we take your payment, too." The man with the coat merely raised an eyebrow at the two men, and just walked out of the room. The men looked back at the envelope of goods. One of them grinned a disturbing smile.

"One step closer to eliminating that Muppet boy. That Walter..."


	11. Chapter 11

The next day, Kermit walked around the studios. He held the photo of Walter's father in his hand, looking at the writing. As soon as he saw Walter, he was gonna give it to him. Judging by how he sounded on the phone the other day, this photo clearly meant a lot to the boy. He must have been close with his father.

However, the frog was unsure how to approach this. By the looks of it, he had the feeling Walter's father wasn't alive anymore. That made sense as to why this photo message meant so much to him. The amphibian felt sort of guilty. Walter has been a part of this family for a while, and they hadn't gotten to know all this personal stuff about him. Even though Walter never brought it up. But, how do you casually bring up something like that?

Kermit went backstage of the studios, where a few of the Muppets were. Swedish Chef was there with the chickens, Gonzo was chatting with Fozzie and Scooter, and part of the Electric Mayhem band was tuning their instruments.

The frog walked up to the band, and saw that a few of them were missing.

"Morning, guys." The frog said. "Where's Floyd and Animal?"

"Animal is like, having a break down!" Janice said, nervously. "Floyd chased after him!" Kermit swallowed.

"Oh no. What is it now...?" He asked, also getting nervous.

"Lost his drum sticks." Dr. Teeth said, testing his keyboard. "His favourite ones."

The frog shuttered a bit, knowing all too well that things ended badly when Animal was mad. Especially when his drum sticks were missing.

"Well, you all know the drill." Kermit advised. "No direct eye contact. I'll have to thank Floyd for trying to keep him calm, later."

"I think we'll all have to thank Floyd, later..." Zoot said, setting up his saxophone.

At that moment, Walter entered. Gonzo, Fozzie, and Scooter noticed. They went up to him to talk.

"Walter, keep an eye out." Gonzo warned the younger Muppet. "Animal is on an anger heist."

"Uh oh...what happened?" Walter willingly asked.

"His drumsticks are missing." Fozzie said.

Walter cringed. "That can't be good..."

"Nope." Scooter agreed. "Just don't get involved, and stay out of his path of rage. And if you find his drumsticks, let him know where they are. Don't try to give them to him, yourself."

Walter nodded. "Thanks. If I didn't know that, I'd probably be teared to pieces." The other three shuttered. As much as everyone adored Animal, it was frightening when he was mad. They had tried to convince him on continuing his anger management courses, because it seemed to have helped before.

When Kermit saw Walter talking with them, he walked over. He held the photo in his hand, careful not to ruing the edges or anything.

"Hey, guys." Kermit said. The frog didn't know how to give Walter's personal belonging back, with the other three watching. He stood there awkwardly for a moment.

"Hey." Walter responded. "Do you...have it...?" Kermit looked up, surprised that the boy didn't mind getting it back in front of the three that stood there.

"Have what?" Fozzie asked.

Neither of them responded and just stood there quietly. Kermit nodded, when he noticed the he was just staring.

"Yea, it's right here." The frog said, showing it to him. "Hope I didn't ruin it."

Walter smiled and shook his head as he reached his hand out to take it. "Don't worry, it's-"

Before Walter could take his precious photo back, Miss Piggy entered through the back door of the theatre.

"My, it's windy out there!" She said, as her vintage scarf blew in her face. The wind was so sudden and strong, that the little photo flew right out of Kermit's hand. Walter and Kermit both shot their heads to where it blew, gasping.

"No, no, no!" Walter stammered, going after it. Kermit followed behind, also frantic. The photo rose high up in the air, but thankfully didn't leave the room. It swiftly floated down, and landed in the pages of the newspaper that Zoot was reading.

"Phew..." Walter sighed, feeling his heart beat a bit too fast. That was close. Before Walter could walk up to Zoot, a freaked out Floyd came running in.

"Red alert! We've got a chaotic Animal coming this way!" The bass player yelled.

"You couldn't calm him down?" Fozzie asked, nervously. Floyd rapidly shook his head.

"I tried everything!" Floyd said. "I even let him eat the garbage!"

"ARGH!" Animal's yell came from around the corner, and startled those who were in the room.

"Okay, everyone just stay calm!" Kermit advised. "No direct eye contact!" Many of the Muppets ducked under some chairs and prop tables, shaking as they heard Animal approaching. Walter and Kermit stayed in place however, standing guard of the crazy Muppet.

"NO DRUMSTICKS! NO DRUMSTICKS!" Animal raged loudly, knocking over a bunch of props.

"Someone give him something to tear up!" Dr. Teeth yelled over Animal's loud sounds of anger.

"What do we use!?" Janice said, hiding behind a chair. Dr. Teeth looked towards where Zoot was.

"Zoot, the newspaper!" He yelled. Zoot nodded, and grabbed the newspaper he was previously reading. The saxophone player got ready to throw it, and Walter felt his stomach drop through the floor.

"Wait! Zoot, no!" Walter called out, already watching the newspaper fly through the air. Animal caught it with his flailing hands and tore it apart like a paper shredder. Little pieces of paper flew around the space like confetti, and Walter watched with fear.

As soon as the newspaper was completely torn to shreds, Animal went running out of the room.

"Drumsticks missing!" His voice echoed from the other room. The others all came out from hiding cautiously, feeling relieved. Except for Walter. Without thinking twice, the boy ran to the paper shreds, landing on his knees. He started to bat through them like crazy.

"No, no!" Walter said, still looking through the pile with fear. His motions were fast, and disturbed. Those who were in the room looked at him with shock and confusion. Except for Kermit, who also feared the possibility.

"Walter, what is it?" Fozzie asked, watching the boy's fast movements.

"Where is it, where is it!?" Walter said, shakiness in his voice. His tone worried everyone. They've never heard him so frantic, before. After a few moments, Walter's movement stopped. They looked at him with silence, waiting for him to do something else. Walter shakily put his hand out and picked up a few teared up pieces.

The young Muppet looked at the shredded pieces in his hands. It wasn't part of the newspaper, however. Walter looked down at the remains of his father's photo. It was no longer visible, and neither was the message.

Fozzie looked towards Kermit. "He must really care about the Los Angeles Times." The frog shook his head, still looking at Walter.

"No, that's not what's going on, Fozzie..."

"Walter, are you okay...?" Gonzo spoke up.

"That...that was all I had left of him..." Walter spoke really quietly that no one could hear him. However, they did hear the pain in his voice.

"Sorry...?" Piggy gently spoke, trying not alarm him. Kermit slowly went up to Walter and put his hand on his shoulder. As soon as he did so though, the boy shot up and ran.

"N-no!" His shaky voice said, as he ran out the back door of the theatre. The few Muppets watched as he ran away with a hurt expression on his face, feeling sad towards him. Even though many didn't know why he was hurt.

"Walter, wait!" Kermit called out, chasing after him out the door. Fozzie and Gonzo immediately followed Kermit, going after Walter.

When the four had gone, Piggy looked towards the rest.

"What happened...?" She asked, concern in her voice.

"I think Animal teared up something that belonged to Walter." Scooter guessed. "Whatever it is, it sure means a lot to him..."

Meanwhile outside, Kermit, Gonzo, and Fozzie ran after Walter through the studios. Walter managed to make some fast turns around some corners, losing the trio that was chasing him. The three slowed down their pace, looking for the boy more cautiously.

"Walter!" Fozzie called out. "Where are you!?"

"Walter! Please, we can talk about this!" Kermit said, as they turned another corner.

"Kermit, what happened?" Gonzo asked. Kermit sighed, knowing he couldn't hide what it was.

"Animal ripped up a photo that belonged to Walter...of his father." Kermit explained. "I'm pretty sure he died in the Marines...so that photo probably meant a lot to him..."

Fozzie played with his scarf, uncomfortably. "Poor Walter..."

"What are we gonna do...?" Gonzo asked, still looking at Kermit. The frog couldn't say that he knew, because he honestly didn't.

"I don't know, guys." He said, defeated. "It's not like we can change what just happened, it was a mistake..."

When the three Muppets turned around another corner, they stopped. They saw Walter sitting cross legged against the parked Electric Mayhem bus. He looked down at the shredded pieces of the photo in his hands, hurt was written all over his face.

Kermit tried to walk over, but Fozzie stopped him.

"Wait, Kermit. What do we say...?" The bear asked. Kermit didn't answer, not knowing.

"Guess we'll figure it out..." Gonzo replied.

Walter sat there, his eyes glued to the paper shreds. His head ached, with confusion and sadness. It was disrupted when he felt three familiar Muppets sit down next to him, also leaning against the bus. He couldn't lift his gaze, though. He felt too upset and embarrassed. The boy didn't say anything, he just looked at the wrecked photo.

The other three didn't say anything either and just sat there quietly. Almost as though they were trying to let him know they were there to comfort him, but not bombard him. Walter fiddled with the photo pieces in his hands, remembering how it was in perfect condition moments before. He barely even got it back from Kermit, before it was blown out of the frog's hand from he wind.

It felt like long minutes before Kermit was the first to speak.

"Walter, we're sorry..." He said. Walter still looked a the pieces and didn't respond.

Gonzo swallowed. "Can we ask when he...?"

Walter sighed, and finally spoke. "I was only eighteen." He played with the pieces in his hand. "Barely even started college..."

The others merely responded by nodding and kept their gazes down.

"What did he do in the army?" Fozzie asked.

Walter cleared his throat. "He was a lieutenant." The boy smiled, thinking of him. "I remember when was eight I always tried to steal his hat."

The other three chuckled a bit at the thought of Walter as a little boy.

"Sounds like something you'd do..." Kermit smiled.

Walter sighed before continuing. "I got the photo message a few months before he..." Walter drifted off, not really wanting to say it. "In the letter it came with he told me that he didn't have a photo of the both of us, so it would have to just be him..."

"Well, that's better than nothing." Fozzie shrugged. "But, now I guess it really is nothing..."

Kermit looked at the bear. "Fozzie..."

"No, no it's okay." Walter said, defending the bear. "He's right."

"Are...are you sure there isn't anything else he left behind...?" Gonzo asked, trying to lift his spirit.

"Well..." Walter started. "He left behind his old truck that my brother and I used for our window washing business. But, Gary sold it..."

"Why?"

"He got a new job as a technician." Walter explained. "It has better pay. I think they need that with their wedding coming soon. So in the end, selling the truck would have probably been the best decision."

They all nodded. "Was that the only photo of him?" Kermit asked.

"No, I have a framed one. But, it doesn't have the same meaning. I know that sounds critical-"

"No, we get it." Kermit reassured him. "There's some things Jim left behind, that can't live up to anything else."

Walter nodded, remembering how the Muppets went through the loss of Jim Henson. Guess he wasn't the only one who had lost family.

Kermit leaned back against the side of the bus, and sighed.

"You look a lot like your father..." The frog said. "Don't know if anyone has told you that."

Walter smirked. "You'd be surprised."

The four sat there, the tension now a bit more relaxed. Walter had to admit, he surprisingly felt more comforted.

"Gonzo, Fozzie?" Kermit asked. "Can I talk to Walter for a second?" Walter looked up at the frog, surprised.

"Uh, yeah sure Kermit." Fozzie said. The two got up.

"We'll see you guys back in the theatre." Gonzo said, as they walked away.

As soon as they were gone, Kermit looked at Walter. He didn't look back.

"Walter, I-"

"Look Kermit, if you're planning to give me a life lesson on losing my dad, I'm sorry I just really would rather not..." Walter said. The frog was taken back by this. That was unexpected, and not the Walter he knew.

"I just want to make sure you're okay..." The frog said.

"Don't worry, it's not your job." Walter responded, bitterly. He stood up from the side of the bus.

"Yes it is." Kermit said, also standing up.

Walter looked back at Kermit, and sighed. "Since when?"

"Since you became a part of this family." Kermit said. "And you are the youngest, after all..."

"What does that have to do with this?" Walter said.

"We just want to make sure you feel supported, okay?" Kermit exasperated, a bit impatient with the younger Muppet.

Walter took a breath, trying not to be upset with Kermit. He'd never thought that he would actually be disagreeing with him.

"Kermit, you don't always have to solve my problems." Walter said, calmly. "To be honest, I've never fully recovered from my dad dying. Right now, I don't need advice. I appreciate it, but I really don't."

"We never really recover from these things." Kermit said. "That's why it's better to handle it, together..."

Walter shook his head. "Sorry, I'd just rather not." The boy began to walk away, until the frog grabbed him by his arm.

"Walter, you can't ignore this. I can help. I should help-"

"No, you shouldn't!" Walter said, sternly. "You're not my dad."

After saying that, Walter walked away from the frog. Kermit felt his throat dry up, feeling a bit hurt. No, he wasn't Walter's dad. But, the boy had lost his father when he was eighteen. Eighteen. It's not like he had one left. Besides the bit of family Walter had back in Smalltown, the Muppets were also Walter's family now. Kermit wanted to live up to that.

"You're right." The amphibian said to himself. "I guess I'm not your dad..."


	12. Chapter 12

A few weeks had gone by, and a lot had advanced. The Muppets have had more amazing shows than they've had in a long time, and we're slowly re-planning their world tour. But until then, they had many gigs lined up on late night talk shows, mid-morning talk shows, live performances at famous theatres and arenas, whatever could be named. Things were running smoothly, and couldn't be better.

The same was said for Walter and Lily's relationship. Lily had gotten many gigs for her acting career. She had been in a few commercials, and guest starred on some shows. The paparazzi of course kept trying to scope in on their dating life, and had recognized that the girl Walter was dating is a future rising star, trying to make it big.

But more personally, Walter and Lily had become closer and closer. Though they had only gone out for a few weeks, it was without a doubt the two were a pair. Lily had also became more acquainted with Walter's Muppet family. They all really liked her, and thought that she was an ideal girl for their young Walter.

With all the success going on with the Muppets and Walter's blossoming relationship with Lily, it distracted him from what had happened with his father's photo. It wasn't exactly something he had planned to give much closure to, and instead accept the fact that his father was still watching him from above. And if he kept it close to his heart, he'd be okay.

However, Kermit had a few different thoughts. After the little spurt him and Walter had that day, the two had moved passed it. They both felt guilty for being bitter and pushy, seeing as the two both had pure caring souls. Walter of course, apologized for being ignorant. Kermit reassured him it was okay, and that it it was natural to be bit testy when you lose something that belonged to someone who passed. It still bothered him a bit when Walter rejected his offer to help, and reminded him that he wasn't his father. Kermit wasn't sure why that bothered him. Maybe because he had took such a liking to Walter, a little part of him almost felt like he was a distant son. But, that wasn't the main thing Kermit was thinking.

Kermit had a few meetings in the past few weeks, since the day he told his few friends that he wanted to pick Walter as the future leader of the Muppets. They called it the Jim Henson Committee, abbreviated as JHC by Rowlf. It still included the same Muppets that Kermit rounded up, which was Miss Piggy, Scooter, Fozzie, Gonzo, and Rowlf. Starting off, meetings were every once and a while. But, it then became more regular. They discussed how Kermit would lead Walter's apprenticeship, and any basic tools regarding it. And of course the big question, how would he ask Walter?

Then came the day when Kermit had to gather them for something important.

"Hey Kermit, do you know where Piggy brought Lily?" Walter asked, walking up to the frog. Kermit looked up from his clipboard.

"Uh, I think she brought her to The Grove. Why?" His leader asked.

"Well, uh..." Walter sounded nervous. "Like Piggy, Lily sometimes can have a craving for being in the lime light. I'm worried that it will cause a riot between them..."

Kermit eyes widened. "Oh no, you're right!" The two immediately ran to the lobby door, from the auditorium.

"Walter, I will personally pay any medical bills if Piggy karate chops Lily." Kermit reassured him as they ran to the door.

"Don't worry, I-"

The two Muppets came to a sharp halt, as they saw the two girls entered the lobby. They were smiling, and not at all arguing. Both boys let out a sigh of relief, glad that Piggy hadn't broke Lily like a toothpick.

The two girls stopped, when they saw their partners.

"You guys look exhausted." Lily said. "Did you jog around the theatre, or something?"

"Just um...wanted to be waiting for you guys when you got back." Walter awkwardly lied. Kermit shook his head.

"Walter, you could have told me sooner that your girlfriend has the same knack for the arts of musical theatre like I do!" Miss Piggy said.

"Well, I told you guys that she did it in New York..." Walter shrugged.

"Yes, but you didn't tell me she was a Broadway Contemporary enthusiast!" Miss Piggy said. "It's about time I've met someone with the same understanding of true performance."

"You said it." Lily agreed. Kermit looked at the time, and remembered that he had to call a JHC meeting. But, how was he gonna do that with Walter standing right there?

Kermit cleared his throat. "Piggy, can I see you for a second?" Miss Piggy followed the frog back to the auditorium, leaving Walter and Lily.

Walter tapped his fingers together, nervous like. "So, uh...she called you my...girlfriend."

Lily couldn't help but arch a brow, and laugh. "Yea, why are you surprised?"

Walter put his hands in his pockets. "Well, I guess because we haven't really talked about that..."

The girl shrugged. "We don't have to. If it helps, I'm happy with our title as boyfriend and girlfriend." Walter looked up at her, smiling.

"Really? Well, I am too!" He said, happily. Lily smiled.

"Listen, I have to get to a table read for my tv show. I'll see you later?" She asked. Walter nodded.

"Yeah, for sure." He said, before kissing her. She left, and Walter couldn't help but feel all fluttered in his chest. He walked back to the auditorium, smiling bashfully.

In the auditorium, Kermit stood with Fozzie and Piggy.

"I'm calling another JHC meeting. It's important, so please tell the others." Kermit said. The frog began walking to his office, as Fozzie and Miss Piggy went to go find the other members.

* * *

As the JHC members rounded each other up, Kermit sat at his desk. He pulled open one of the drawers, and pulled out a brand new document. The frog sighed, looking at it. He just got it printed and legalized yesterday. It was the new contract.

His office door then opened, and the five others entered.

"Okay chief, what's on the agenda today?" Scooter asked, as they all sat down. Kermit lifted up the document for them to see.

"I had the new version of the contract made." He said, passing it around. "The same standards like the one I signed, but specialized for Walter."

"Anything new you added?" Gonzo asked, as he passed it back to Kermit. The frog shook his head.

"No, I didn't." Kermit said, putting it on his desk. "If Walter signs this, he agrees to an apprenticeship with me and becoming the future leader."

"So, what now?" Fozzie asked. The room stayed quiet.

"I guess...we have to figure out when I'll ask him." Kermit concluded.

"Well if you have the document ready, I don't see why you can't ask him soon." Scooter said.

Kermit hesitated. "That may be a problem..."

"Why?"

The frog leaned against his desk. "I thought a lot about what you guys said about Lily. How I would need Walter's full time attention, and that she may take away from that..."

Many of the Muppets exchanged some looks. They didn't look totally convinced.

"Well, we were probably wrong." Rowlf said. "I'm sure it's fine."

Kermit shook his head. "I don't know, Rowlf. Of course I like Lily, we all do. She's a very nice girl and I couldn't be happier for Walter. But, maybe you're right. I think I do need Walter's full-time attention. The two of them have been so occupied with each other though, it might be hard."

"Guess that's just young love." Rowlf shrugged.

"I know..." Kermit said, looking down at the contract. "Ok, I know what to do."

The others all inched forward in their seats.

"I'll try to get Walter's focus into a more hard working head space, to keep him more occupied. And when the time is right, I'll tell him."

Scooter nodded. "Anyone who's on board say 'I'."

"I." Rowlf said, raising his paw.

"I." Gonzo and Fozzie said in unison.

"I." Piggy voted last. Scooter looked back the Kermit.

"I think that settles it, chief."

* * *

Walter sat on the couch in his apartment. He had just hung up the phone. Currently, he was waiting for Lily to come over. But, he just had the most busy call with Kermit. The frog called him, asking the boy to do these extra work things and possibly come in early tomorrow. As much work as it was, Walter was of course wiling to do it. He would never let anyone down.

Just then, someone knocked on the door.

"Come on, Walt. My bag is heavy and I think my arms are gonna fall off." Lily's voice said from the other side. Walter chuckled, as he went to go answer.

He opened the door, and Lily came in. She kissed him on the cheek.

"Sorry I'm late. The shoot went longer than I thought it would." She said, taking her bag off her shoulder.

"No problem." Walter said, closing the door. "I'm just happy that you're getting more gigs. I saw you in the Rising Stars magazine that Piggy was reading the other day. We all did."

Lily couldn't help but blush. "Glad to know I'm starting to be recognized."

The two of them went and sat on the couch.

"I just got a call from Kermit." Walter said, with a funny tone. Lily looked at him with confusion.

"Should you be nervous?" She asked.

"No, he calls me a lot for an extra opinion on things. But, he asked me to come in early tomorrow and do some extra work."

"Well, that's good." Lily said, sounding sure. "I think he puts a lot of trust towards you."

Walter nodded. "Anything else up with you? Besides work, that is?" He asked his girlfriend, taking her hand in his. Lily smiled, batting her eyelashes slightly.

"Actually, yeah. I have something for you..." Lily said. The girl reached into her bag, and pulled out a little white box. It had a red ribbon tied neatly around it. Lily handed to Walter, who carefully took it.

"I got something for you." She said. Walter looked from her, to the little package.

"Did I miss a memo...?" He asked. Lily rolled her eyes, smiling.

"Just open it, before I do." She said through a chuckle. That being said, Walter looked at the white box once more. He carefully tugged on the red ribbon, pulling it out of it's place. It swiftly came off, and he tossed it aside. The boy lifted the top of the small white box off, and saw a layer of tissue paper. He took it out of the way, and saw his present underneath.

It was a brand new black leather wallet, with Walter's name engraved on the bottom right corner. Walter picked it up carefully, running his thumb over the fresh material of the wallet.

"On our first date, you told me you were worried about losing that photo-message from your dad. And how you actually might, since you have such an old wallet. So, I thought I'd help you out...to keep that photo safe." Lily explained. Walter continued to look at the wallet, and his girlfriend felt nervous when he didn't respond.

"What's wrong? Do you not like it...?" She asked. Walter shot his gaze at her.

"No, no Lily I love it." Walter said, taking her hand again. "It's amazing. Something just...happened to the photo..."

Lily's eyes went wide. "Oh no, did you lose it?"

"No..." Walter shifted uncomfortably. "It was...ripped up, by accident." He thought of the incident with Animal. "I'll tell you about it another time..."

Lily held his hand with both of hers. She knew how much that photo meant to him. "Walter, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to bring down your mood."

Walter squeezed her hand a bit tighter, and held the wallet close. "You didn't. If anything, you brightened it..." Walter looked her in here eyes, and Lily couldn't help but smile. At that moment, Walter felt something spark within him. A spark that was telling him to advance with what his heart was telling him. By now, Walter was accepting of his feelings for Lily. He wouldn't push this back.

"Lily, I..." Walter swallowed. "I..."

Lily looked at him, not breaking her gaze. She waited for him to say something, her heart fluttering.

"I...I love you." He finally said, his eyes full of care. The two of them felt the world disappear around them, and Walter swore he could see tears dwell in Lily's eyes.

"I love you, too..." She said, her voice cracking a bit. Walter smiled, feeling himself become emotional as well. He leaned in and gently kissed her. She kissed back, and they both felt their hearts become a little more filled.

* * *

Later that evening, Kermit still sat at his desk in his office. He was finishing up the last of his paperwork. The Muppet had a hectic and exhausting work day, and was ready to go home. Like Piggy had told him, he needed to relax. He couldn't remember the last time he stayed this late at the studios. The frog needed to rest.

As Kermit was putting the last of his filed papers into his desk drawers, the office phone on his desk rang. Kermit came up from putting stuff in his drawer, and reached for the phone.

"Hi-ho, Kermit the frog here." The amphibian said, answering the phone.

There was no direct answer from the other end. The frog could hear a slight, heavy breathing. It became louder, and louder.

"Hello...? Is someone there?" Kermit asked, confused.

"Walter is going to die." A gruff, deep Russian accented voice said. The other line then hung up.

Kermit felt his heart drop through his chest, as that disturbed voice echoed through his head. Mainly, the words that were attached to it. He still held the phone up, staying frozen in place. He swallowed, and shakily put it down.

The frog snapped out of his moment of fear, and dialled another number.

"Hello, 911? I'd like to report a threat..."


	13. Chapter 13

Walter sat in his apartment, sitting on his couch watching television. However, he wasn't really paying attention to it. He fiddled with the new wallet Lily gave him in his hand. She had left a few minutes ago, but he couldn't stop thinking about what had just happened. He told her he loved her for the first time, and she said she loved him back. He couldn't believe it. The boy felt his heart pound with happiness every time he thought of it. Walter wish Lily didn't have to leave, but she had to be at work early tomorrow. So did he, anyway.

Walter gently put the wallet down on the coffee table, next to his phone. As soon as he did so though, his phone immediately buzzed. He saw Kermit's contact name.

"Again...?" Walter said, considering Kermit called him not that long ago. Walter was a good guy though, and he would never ignore anyone.

Walter picked up his phone and answered.

"Hey, Kermit." The boy said, happily.

"Walter. Are you okay? Where are you, right now?" Kermit said. His voice sounded nervous.

"Uh, I'm in my apartment. Why?"

"Are you alone? Or is Lily with you?" Kermit's voice was still nervous, and he sounded out of breath.

"No, she left a few minutes ago. Why, what's going on?" Walter asked, starting to get freaked out by Kermit's tone.

"Walter, listen to me really carefully." The frog said on the other end. "80's Robot is in the car, coming to get you. Go downstairs to meet him, and he'll bring you to Piggy and I's place. Okay? Don't go anywhere else."

"Kermit, what's going on?" Walter said.

"I'll tell you, after. Please, just got downstairs and wait for him."

"Okay, but what-"

"Walter." Kermit's voice was firm, and parent-like. His sudden change in tone scared Walter slightly, and he decided to just go along with what he was asking.

"Okay." Walter spoke. "I'll go wait for him."

"Thank you. Please, don't do anything else." Kermit said, his voice stern but scared. The two hung up their phones, and Walter got up from his couch. He turned off his tv, grabbed his wallet, phone, and keys, and went to the door.

As Walter made his way downstairs, he couldn't help but feel confused and nervous. Confused, because he didn't know what was going on. Nervous, because Kermit sounded like a war was about to happen, or something.

Walter got to the lobby, and only had to wait a few minutes for 80's Robot to pull up with the car. As soon as he saw him, Walter went straight to the passenger seat.

"Hello, Mr. Walter." 80's Robot said, in his robotic voice. "I am here to escort you to the frog and pig household." Walter buckled in his seat belt, and looked at the robot.

"Do you know what's going on?" Walter asked him, as 80's started the car.

"I am just following orders." He responded, pulling out of parking into the lane. "I was told by Mr. Kermit to come pick you up, and escort you to his house."

"He didn't say why?" Walter said. He wouldn't give up trying to figure out what was going on. Something bad was happening, the boy could tell.

80's shook his head, keeping his eyes on the road. "He did not say why. He just gave me orders, Mr. Walter."

Walter sighed, and leaned back in his seat. What started out as a peaceful and happy night, was shifting completely. The boy looked out the window, watching the night lights of Los Angeles pass by. He looked back at the robot, and sat up.

"Can I at least call someone?" Walter said, hoping to call Lily or his brother. Much to his dismay, the robot shook his head.

"No. Mr. Kermit requested that you don't draw any attention until you're with him and Miss Piggy." 80's Robot said, turning the car around a corner.

The boy sighed once again, and crossed his arms. He felt like he was a child again, being told what to do and to not disobey. He wasn't exactly happy with how Kermit had been acting like his father, lately. He wasn't his dad, but he was acting like an unofficial parent. Who said it was his job to act like a parent figure? Walter shook his head. He couldn't let this anger get over him. He didn't want to get mad with Kermit, like he did a few weeks ago. The boy felt terrible after that whole incident. But still, he didn't feel like it was Kermit's place to be acting like some sort of parent. As much as he looked up to Kermit, no one could ever replace a man like his dad was.

80's Robot turned the corner into Bel-Air, and Walter snapped back into reality. He looked out the window, until he felt the car slow down. He watched as the car turned into the pathway with the familiar gate that had the Kermit and Piggy silhouette, that opened up for the car. The car pulled into the lot, and 80's Robot parked the car in the big parking lot outside the house.

Walter and 80's Robot got out of the car, and walked up to the big mansion door. The boy walked a bit unwillingly, his mind still on the topic of Kermit and his dad. Walter was distracted though, when he saw two police cars parked in the lot as well.

"The police?" Walter said to himself. Something was wrong.

80's Robot used the heavy door knocker, and the two waited. Moments later, it opened up. Miss Piggy stood there with a shook expression on her face. She seemed just as shaky as Kermit sounded on the phone.

"Oh, thank goodness Walter." Piggy said taken him by his arm and pulling him in. The Robot followed, and closed the door behind them.

"Are you hurt?" Miss Piggy asked, holding Walter's arm a bit too tight.

"No...?" Walter said, squirming uncomfortably. Piggy let go of his arm. "Miss Piggy, what's going on?"

"Just come with me." The pig responded, leading him to the living room. They walked down the hall in silence. Every little while, Walter looked at Piggy. Her face was still filled with concern. Walter looked forward, and just kept walking to the living room.

As soon as they got there, Walter took in his surroundings. Four policemen and women were standing in the room, asking Kermit some questions. The frog sat in his chair, his face was also concerned. When they all saw the three enter, Kermit shot out of his seat.

"Walter, are you okay?" The amphibian asked.

The boy was starting to get tired of that question. "I'm fine. Can you tell me what's going on?"

A police woman stepped forward. "Walter, please sit down." Walter, Kermit, and Piggy went over to the couch and sat. Walter sat in the middle, feeling nervous.

"Did I do something...?" Walter asked, nervously.

"No, you didn't do anything." Another police officer said, as he stood next to the police woman. "We just want to ask a few questions." Walter responded by merely nodding.

Another officer pulled out a notepad. "Walter, have you been approached by any strange men, lately?"

Walter thought about it for a second. "Uh, no." He responded, truthfully.

"No men, particularly with a Russian accent?" Another one asked. Walter shook his head.

"No, I haven't."

A few of the officers wrote down in their notepads. Walter shifted in his seat, ill-at-ease.

"Have you received any calls, texts, or messages from an unknown contact?" One officer asked.

Walter thought about it for a moment. His mind then flashed back to a few weeks ago, when he received a few weird texts from an unknown number when he was in Lily's apartment. It was an unknown contact.

"Yeah, I did." Walter said, the officers all perked up. "A few weeks ago, a strange number texted me."

"What did they say?"

Walter tried to remember. "Um, something like 'guess who?' and 'see ya around, kid.'" Kermit played with his hands, nervously. Walter noticed, and kept quiet.

"Is that all they said?" The first woman asked.

"Well, I said that they probably had the wrong number. But, they said they didn't." Walter said, feeling the room becoming more and more tense.

"You sure nothing else happened?"

Walter sighed. "Yes, I'm sure." Walter leaned forward. "Can someone please tell me what's going on?" Everyone in the room looked towards Kermit.

"Walter," Kermit began. "I was working late in my office at the studios, and I got a call..."

The boy swallowed. "From who...?"

Kermit shook his head. "I don't know. But they said..." The frog drifted off. Walter wouldn't let it stop there.

"They said...?"

The frog looked back up at Walter. "They...were threatening to kill you..."

Walter felt his chest become heavy, all of a sudden feeling cold and spooked. That was unexpected. He thought maybe someone had gotten hurt, or something was missing. He didn't expect that to be said.

"What...what do you mean they threatened to kill me...?" Walter said, his voice nervous like.

"They just said that you would...die." Kermit said the last word very uncomfortably and quiet. Walter shifted his gaze away and looked at the floor. He ran his hand through his hair, and didn't know what to say or do.

"Walter, we're currently trying to track down this call." An officer said. "But, we think it would be best if you stay with Kermit and Miss Piggy for a while. Just until we have a better understanding on what's going on."

"Would that be okay, Walter?" Piggy asked.

Walter wiped a bit of sweat of his forehead. "Yeah, whatever works best I guess..." His voice sounded confused and still nervous. He now completely understood as to why Kermit was so scared on the phone.

"Okay, we're going to leave you three." An officer said, putting his police jacket back on. "If you want to call any family, that would be fine Walter." The officers began to sort their stuff, and Kermit got up.

"Thank you officers, I'll show you out." Kermit said, politely. Even in a moment of fear, Kermit never broke his polite attitude. As the frog showed them out, Piggy got up too.

"Come on, Walter. 80's Robot has room set up for you." She said, her voice more nervous rather than thoughtful. Walter could tell she was trying to put on a positive face. He followed her into the big corridor of the mansion, once again in silence.

As they walked down the hall, the boy looked at all the big photos of the Muppets Kermit had hung up. At any other moment, Walter would be excited to be looking at old photos of the Muppets in their early days. But right now, the mood in the air was too discomforting for him to be fascinated by Muppet artifacts.

When they reached Walter's guest room, Piggy stood at the door.

"We're around the corner if you need anything. 80's Robot is downstairs, too. I think it would be better if you got your stuff, tomorrow" Miss Piggy said. Walter nodded.

"Thanks Miss Piggy. For...all of this." The boy said. As grateful as he was, it as undeniable that he was still shocked by the scary threat against him. Miss Piggy played with the feathered scarf that dangled from her arms.

"Anytime." She nodded. "Like Kermit says, we're family..."

When Miss Piggy left, Walter entered the guest room and closed the door. He looked around, it was a nice room. It had a light beige tone, which gave it a peaceful atmosphere. Probably what Walter needed after all of that.

He went and sat on the bed. He sighed, feeling a bit heavy. This was all too overwhelming, confusing, nerve racking, and overall bad. The boy needed to rest, and try to get his mind off all of this for now.

But, before Walter would get ready for bed, he needed to make some calls. Just like the officers said.

He pulled out his phone, and speed dialled a contact name.

"Gary?" Walter said, speaking into the phone when it answered. "Listen, something's going on..."


	14. Chapter 14

"What do you mean someone wants to kill Walter...?" Fozzie asked, his voice all scared. Kermit, Miss Piggy, and Walter had gathered all the Muppets the next day in the studios. Everyone was listening carefully, shocked by what they were hearing from the three.

Gonzo rubbed the back of his head, uncomfortably. "Fozzie, could you not say that...? It's too dark to think about..."

Walter shrugged his shoulders. "I know it's dark, but he's right..." Many of the Muppets all exchanged looks of fear, and stood in place uncomfortably.

"Is there anything else the police found?" Scooter asked.

Kermit shook his head, trying to put on a brave face for everyone. "Not that we know of, yet. All we know about is the threat I got against Walter last night..."

Dr. Teeth held his hat his hands, playing with the fabric. He looked up. "What can we do to help?"

"Well, Walter is already staying with Piggy and I for a while. It's probably a safer option." Many of the Muppets nodded in agreement. Kermit cleared his throat and continued. "As for the rest of you, we only ask one thing."

They all inched forward.

"Everyone needs to stay together. No one travels around L.A. alone. Especially Walter, but everyone should to be safe."

"We'll protect Walter." Sam said, confidently.

"And we'll protect each other." Scooter finished. Walter smiled slightly, feeling happy that his family was looking out for him. But a part of him was a little embarrassed. It seemed like they wanted to protect him almost in a way in which he couldn't protect himself.

"Did you tell Lily what's going on...?" Rowlf asked Walter. Kermit shifted in place. No one noticed though.

"Yeah, I did. Her and my brother." Walter responded to the dog.

"Look everyone, we know this is shocking news. It's terrible, but we can't let it distract us from our lives. That's what...they'd expect from us. Remember, we have a live show at the Orpheum Theatre in a few days. We're not to going to let his get to us, okay? We just need to be careful..." Kermit said.

The Muppets all nodded, and proceeded to go pack up for the day.

When everyone was occupied, Walter began to walk away. Kermit stopped him.

"80's Robot will drive you, and you can go get your stuff from your apartment." The frog reassured him.

Walter nodded. "Ok, I will. Thanks." The boy tried to walk away again, clearly still uncomfortable from what was happening. Kermit stopped him, again.

"Were you...planning on seeing Lily...?" His leader asked. Walter put his hands in the pockets of his zip up sweater. He shrugged.

"I was hoping to...for a bit." He said, sort of quietly. Kermit cleared his throat.

"I know you want to, but maybe you should just come back to the house..." Kermit said. "Probably best for your safety..."

Walter tilted his head, looking at Kermit suspiciously. "Kermit, do you...not like Lily, or something?"

Kermit swallowed. "No, of course I like Lily." He said, truthfully. "I'm just trying to consider what's good for your safety. We have no idea where this threat is coming from, and we need to be cautious. And, I think that we might know what's better for you more than Lily-"

"More than Lily?" Walter interrupted, eyeing the frog. "Kermit, I've known her since I was five. Of all people, she should know me best."

"I know, but-"

"No, you don't know." Walter said, keeping his ground. He sighed. "Kermit, I looked up to you when I was growing up, but it's not like you knew who I was in return. To you, I was just another fan in the crowd."

"But you're not just another fan in the crowd!" Kermit said. "You're family, this is we're you belong." The frog tried to not go overboard with what he was saying. He didn't want to let it slip that he wants Walter as his apprentice right to his face. He wasn't ready to tell him, yet.

Walter ran his hand through his hair. "I know. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. But, I don't need you to tell me how to lead my own life, Kermit."

The boy tried to walk away for the third time, only to be stopped by Kermit again. The frog grabbed his sleeve, keeping him back.

"Don't walk away from me, young man. Not with a tone like that." He said, firmly. Walter looked at him funny, weirded out by Kermit's sudden parent-like tone.

"Young man...?" Walter said, trying to hide is slight laughter. Kermit flushed a darker green, feeling embarrassed. That sounded less awkward in his head.

At that moment, Walter started to see things from Kermit's perspective. If one of the other Muppets were threatened to be killed, Walter would want them safe too. It wasn't just that though. Walter was new, younger, and probably not as experienced in the public eye as everyone else. Kermit just wanted to make sure he was okay.

"You know..." Walter said. "I won't see Lily, tonight." Kermit looked at him, surprised by his sudden change.

"You won't?" Kermit asked.

"Yea..." Walter said, hunching his shoulders slightly. "Maybe it's best if I just stay hidden for a while. Lily will understand."

"Are...you sure?"

"Yeah, Kermit..." Walter said, a bit more sincerely. "This threat already has all of us scared, and stressed. I don't want to make matters worse."

"Hey Walter!" Scooter called, the boy turning his attention towards the stage manager. "Can we run through your number, quickly? Theres been a few technical changes."

Walter looked back at Kermit quickly. "I have to go, but I promise I won't." He began to walk off. "Whatever's better for everyone's reassurance."

The frog watched him walk off, an he felt a bit more relieved. After everything that happened last night, the frog could not stop thinking about it. If something happened to anyone, he wouldn't know what he would do. And of everyone, Walter was being threatened. Why the new kid? Kermit sighed, his head ached. He needed to just go sit in his office for a while.

* * *

"I'm glad you understand." Walter said, talking into his phone. The day was coming to an end, and Walter was sitting in the lobby of the studios. He was talking on the phone with Lily.

"Of course I understand, Walter. I didn't expect us to be seeing each other often after you told me someone wants to..." Lily drifted off, and Walter heard her breath a little choppy at the other end.

"Hey," Walter said, not wanting her to cry. "I'm okay, Lil. I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere. I'm staying with Kermit, remember?"

It was quiet for a moment, before Lily spoke. "Yeah, I know. Just, call me when you can. I want to make sure you're safe."

"I will, I love you." Walter said, looking around the room. He hadn't realized how long he'd been talking. All the Muppets were in the lobby now, talking amongst each other.

"I love you, too." Lily said. They both hung up the phone, and Walter sighed. This was overwhelming. He was hoping 80's Robot would show up soon, so he could pick up his stuff from his apartment, and then get back to Kermit and Piggy's house. He needed to clear his head.

"Hey, Walter...?" Kermit said coming up to him. He walked sort of slowly, but Walter knew why. The frog was probably still embarrassed after calling him 'young man,' as though he was his father.

"Yeah, Kermit?" Walter said, trying not to show his embarrassment too.

"I know you're not going to like this, so I'll just be up front." Kermit said, his gaze on the floor. "I think...maybe you should stay away from the public, and studios for a while..."

Walter felt his throat dry up. A few of the other Muppets nearby heard Kermit say this, and looked towards him.

"What...?" Walter said, in shock. Kermit cleared his throat and continued.

"Just...for your safety. I think it would be better if you stay in hiding until this case has been tracked."

Walter would have protested, but could feel a bunch of eyes watching them. He didn't want to make a scene, but at he same time wasn't too happy.

"Okay..." Walter said, putting his hands in his pockets. "I think I'm...gonna take a walk." The boy quickly turned and went out the door of the studios. Kermit willingly followed behind, trying to stop him.

"This doesn't look good..." Gonzo said, following behind. Piggy followed too, allowing a bunch of the intrigued Muppets to so, as well.

Walter walked down the side walk, with Kermit pacing behind. The Muppets trailed behind them, listening to the two argue.

"Walter, come on. You know this is better for you!" Kermit said.

"I never said it wasn't!" Walter said over his shoulder. "I just need some space, that's all."

"You're clearly not okay with this." Kermit said, calmly. Walter stopped in his tracks, and turned to look at the frog. Kermit shook with fright when he saw Walter scowling at him, his eyes narrowed and his eyebrows down and together. He's never seen that look on Walter, before.

"Of course I'm not okay!" Walter said. "I'm not okay with any of this! I'm not mad at you about this though, I'm mad because everyone is acting like I can't handle myself!"

"Well, when someone in this family gets a death threat, it's not exactly something we take lightly." Kermit sassed back, bitterly. Many of the Muppets shared some uncomfortable looks. It was never a good sign when Kermit was talking back in an argument.

Walter broke his gaze from Kermit, but still looked angry.

"We all care about you." Kermit said. "No matter how many times you try to stop it, we're always gonna be trying to do what's best for you."

Walter began to pace backwards. "Well, tell me when you figure out exactly what that is." The boy said through his frustration. He then turned to leave, just in time for the light to turn red for the cars. The cars came to a halt, and Walter began to cross the street. The Muppets watched him walk away, feeling upset. Especially Kermit. If this was how all young people behaved, he didn't know how Jim was able to handle it when Kermit was younger.

As Walter crossed the street however, a car came driving down the opposite lane, chaotically. Fozzie was the first to notice.

"He's not suppose to be going, it's a red light." The bear said, quietly. The car wouldn't stop, and just kept driving towards the walking lane. Kermit looked at Walter.

"Walter...come back to the side walk." Kermit said, nervously.

"Leave me alone." Walter said, still walking across the street. He didn't notice the car coming in his direction. The Muppets kept shifting their gaze from Walter, to the zooming car.

"Walter! Come back, a car is coming!" Scooter called out.

"What're you talking about?" Walter said. "It's a red light-"

"WALTER, LOOK OUT!" Kermit yelled at the top of his voice. Walter shot his gaze up and looked towards the lane. A car came speeding right up to him, and Walter eye's immediately shot wide open. But, it was too late to make any sudden movements.

Walter felt his heart practically explode, as the bumper of the car came slamming against his chest and sent him flying onto the concrete of the street. His friends watched in horror, as his head hit the pavement. He was immediately out like a light.

"NO!" A bunch of Muppets yelled in unison. Traffic stopped at the horrible sight that had took place. The car that had just hit Walter however, took off without reason.

"Hey!" Gonzo yelled at the car that was taking off. "Get back here you no good-"

"Walter!" Piggy said, as her, Kermit, and some of the others kneeled down near his unconscious body. Gonzo forgot about his concern of the car and just went to kneel with the rest of the Muppets.

"Walter? Can you hear us!?" Kermit yelled, putting his hand on the boy's bleeding shoulder. "Oh no..."

"Come on buddy, wake up!" Fozzie said, desperately.

Animal came close to the boy's unconscious body, and then noticed the amounts of blood that was beginning to form.

"WALTER BLEED." Animal said, nervously.

"No...no!" Kermit said.

"Someone call an ambulance!" Scooter yelled. A bunch of people got out of their cars, and a woman pulled out her phone.

"Yes, hello!? A young Muppet was just hit by a car outside their studios, please hurry!" The woman said.

Though it only took less than two minutes for the ambulance to arrive, it felt like a long time for the Muppet family. Some tried to lift Walter slightly off of the ground, but Bunsen stopped them.

"There's too much blood." Bunsen said. "The medics should be the only ones moving him."

Kermit couldn't help but shake with fear, but held it back. He looked up from Walter to the rest of the Muppets. They all looked at the young boy, their faces already stained with tears. The frog stayed the closest to the boy, until he felt a big hand push him out of the way. The medics had arrived.

"We need oxygen, over here!" A man in a medical emergency suit yelled, studying Walter's body.

Another medic came rushing over with an oxygen tank. She strapped the oxygen mask on Walter's face, and tried to steady his breathing.

"We're losing him." She said, allowing the Muppets to further shake with fear. "We need to get him to the ER asap." Two other medics came with a gurney, and swiflty lifted Walter onto it. The mask was still on his face, but blood dripped from his back side.

"That's a huge mass of blood, sir." One medic said.

"I know, let's get him to the hospital, quickly." The head medic responded. As the other three wheeled him to the ambulance, the head medic looked at the Muppets.

"We can only take a few of you in the truck." He said, looking at the huge amount of colourful Muppet faces. "Who's it gonna be?"

"I'll go." Kermit said, walking. Fozzie, Gonzo, and Piggy followed too.

"The rest of us can take the Electric Mayhem bus." Dr. Teeth advised to everyone else. The rest of the Muppets scattered back to the studios, to get their lift.

The ambulance shut the doors of the truck, with Kermit, Fozzie, Gonzo, Piggy, and an unconscious Walter inside. They took off, racing to the hospital to save Walter.


	15. Chapter 15

The Muppets sat in the waiting room of the hospital. Time felt like eternity, and the atmosphere was filled with dreaded sadness. Some were sitting, some were pacing back and forth. But, it was clear the same thing was on everyone's mind.

What was gonna happen to Walter? They waited in complete silence. Except for the sounds of those who were still silently crying. Everyone was in fear for the boy's life. They impatiently kept looking at the door for the medics to come tell them the news. The last time they saw Walter, he was bleeding unimaginably, and needed to be given oxygen from the tank. The Muppets all shook with fear.

Kermit sat next to Piggy, both holding each other's hands. They didn't look at each other, they just comforted one another with silence.

"Should we call Gary...?" Fozzie finally spoke up. Kermit swallowed.

"I already did." The frog responded, still looking at the floor. "Him and Mary are catching the next bus to L.A."

"What about Lily?" Scooter asked.

"Yes, her too. She's on her way, now." Kermit reassured everyone. It went back to being silent.

"He's...gonna be okay, right?" Gonzo said. A few of the Muppets looked towards Kermit, hoping he would have the answer as usual. Kermit refused to look up from the floor, he was in too much fear.

Before it could be further questioned, a medic entered from the ER. The Muppets all shot their gaze up, and went towards the doctor.

"How is he?" Kermit was the first to ask, putting on a brave face. The doctor wiped a bit of sweat from his brow, clearly coming from hard medical work on Walter.

"Not well, sir..." The doctor said. The Muppets all looked at him with worry in their eyes.

"He's in critical condition." The doctor said. The Muppets didn't break their gaze.

"Critical condition? So he's asleep?" Fozzie asked. The doctor nodded.

"Yes, a coma." He responded. The room fell heavy again.

"C-can we see him?" Gonzo nervously asked. The doctor sighed, but nodded.

"Yes, but his condition is very bad. He may not look the same..." The doctor warned. The Muppets nodded, but willingly went. They all wanted to see Walter, not matter what state of condition he was in.

The doctor lead the Muppets down the hall, Kermit in the lead as usual. Not just because he was leader, but could not express the fear he was feeling for the boy. As they got closer and closer to the room, all their little hearts felt heavy. What if it was worse than ever?

The doctor stopped at a door, and carefully opened it for them.

"You can go. Please don't touch the machines though, they're highly delicate." The doctor said. Kermit nodded.

"We won't, thank you." Kermit said, his voice a little more quiet than usual.

The Muppets entered, and their hearts shattered at the sight in front of them.

Walter laid down in the hospital bed, with an oxygen mask strapped over his face. His eyes were shut closed, and a white bandage was wrapped tightly around his forehead, with a blood stain on it. He was shirtless, and there were heart monitors strapped on his bare chest. As well as another bandage on his gashed shoulder.

They all surrounded his bed, tears dwelling in their eyes. The doctor was right. It didn't look like the Walter they knew. It was hardly him, at all.

"Oh...poor dear..." Piggy whispered, leaning against the bed to get a better look.

Dr. Teeth swallowed, before talking. "We're sorry boy, we didn't mean for this to happen..."

"It's no one's fault..." Kermit reassured the keyboardist. "It's someone else's." Everyone looked towards him.

"Who?" Floyd asked. Kermit looked at Walter, shuttering at the thought of his accident.

"Guys, that car hit him and took off without stopping. And we got a threat specifically against him. They clearly hit him on purpose" The frog explained. Everyone shifted uncomfortably. "I know it's scary, but it has to be the truth."

Scooter looked at the boy. "I can't believe it. We leave him alone for five seconds, and this happens..."

Janice sniffed, allowing Floyd and Teeth to comfort her. Everyone in the room felt nothing but heartache towards their young friend. Their family. Kermit sighed, looking at Walter once more. The only sound in the room was the beeping on the monitor of Walter's slow heart beat.

"Is that beeping suppose to try and wake him up?" Fozzie asked, pointing at the monitor. Many of the Muppets shook their heads.

"Fozzie, that's his heart beat." Scooter responded.

Floyd walked closer to Walter's bed. "This is worse than when Kermit got hit by a car in Manhattan years ago..."

The Muppets continued to shift uncomfortably, remembering Kermit's accident from all those years ago.

"At least I was conscious..." Kermit said, not really caring about his accident.

"Yeah, but you got amnesia." Rowlf said. "Until Miss Piggy karate chopped you, and returned your memory."

Kermit shrugged. "I'd rather Walter have amnesia, than have his life at risk..." The frog continued to protest, fighting back tears.

Fozzie swallowed. "But he wouldn't remember us, like you did..." The frog shook his head.

"But, he would be okay..."

The Muppets all felt their eyes continue to dwell with tears. This was all too overwhelming.

"Our Manhattan trip..." Zoot pondered. "That was a long time ago."

Kermit nodded. "A few years before Walter was born." The Muppets couldn't help but smile, slightly. It was funny how Walter was in fact younger than all of them. Heck, he was still in his early twenties.

"How old is Walter?" Fozzie randomly asked.

"Twenty-four." Floyd said.

Piggy shook her head, putting her hand gently on Walter's. "That's too young..." The Muppets unwillingly nodded, agreeing. It was too young.

"He doesn't deserve this." Gonzo all of a sudden said, with a shaky voice. "Not after everything he has done for us."

Kermit sighed, and stood by Piggy. He carefully put his frog hand on the boy's injured shoulder, trying not to hurt him.

"We promise, Walter..." Kermit said. "We're gonna find out who's doing this."

"Lily." Animal all of a sudden said, getting everyone's attention. Animal was looking out the door of the room, down the hall.

"Where is he?" They heard the shaky voice of Walter's girlfriend echo down the hall. Kermit took this as a sign to leave for a bit.

"We should give them some privacy." The amphibian said. All the Muppets began to pile out of the room, just in time for Lily to arrive. Most of the Muppets walked back to the waiting room, giving Lily some reassuring words and gestures.

Kermit paced behind though, and turned back to look at Lily.

"Lily?" He said. The girl looked towards him, her eyes already a bit watery. "He's...not the same..."

Lily carefully wiped a tear from her eye, and nodded. "I know." She said, softly. Lily then ducked into Walter's room, closing the door behind her. Kermit continued to walk down the hall.

"This can't be happening..."

* * *

One by one, everyone left to go home that day. They didn't want to leave, however. Every Muppet wanted to stay with Walter, but they needed rest. It would be best for them to not always be hanging around the hospital the entire day.

As the sun was setting down, only three others remained by Walter's bed side. Lily, Kermit, and Piggy.

"Why would someone be doing this?" Lily asked, gently holding Walter's hand. Kermit shrugged.

"Who knows...we don't even know who's behind it..." The frog said, looking at Walter's heart monitor. His heart rate stayed the same for the past few hours, with no sign of change.

"Is there anything you could have picked up from the call?" Lily said. "Did you recognize the voice?"

Kermit thought about it for a moment. "No I didn't...but they had an accent."

"What kind?"

"I...I think it may have been Russian?" Kermit pondered over it. _Russian?_ Kermit thought about it over in his head for a few moments. _Russian...wait..._ Realization then hit the frog like a ton of bricks. "Oh my gosh...how did I not think about this, before?"

Piggy began to pick things up as well. "Russian accent? Kermie, you don't think..."

"It could have to be one of his helpers...not him directly." The amphibian said, scratching his head. Lily looked at them, confused.

"Who are we talking about?" She asked. Kermit looked at her.

"Well...did Walter ever tell you about our mishap in Europe?" He asked her.

"He didn't have to. It was all over the news." Lily said, referring to the Muppet's Constantine situation. "Why? You think he's behind this?"

Kermit nodded. "That accent on the other end wasn't Constantine's, but I'm sure it was someone who works with him..."

"How could they have gotten here?" Piggy said. "That prison is too heavily guarded."

"Which is probably why he sent people, instead of himself." Kermit began to put all the pieces together. "Constantine's behind this. He's sending goons to go after Walter."

"But, why...?" Lily asked innocently, squeezing Walter's motionless hand. "Why would they be going after him?"

"I'm not sure, Lily." Kermit said. "Not trying to sound self-absorbed, but it would make more sense if they were going after me. I mean, I'm probably the one Constantine should hate the most."

"Did you tell the police the phone call had a Russian accent?" Lily asked.

"I did." Kermit said. "But, I didn't think too much into it at the time. I can't believe I'm only realizing this now..."

Just then, the door opened. A doctor entered.

"Visiting time is over, folks." She said. "We promise he'll be fine."

The three nodded, and hesitantly got ready to go. They weren't ready to leave Walter after staying with him for hours. It's not like he was going anywhere, but they wouldn't be able to get him off their minds.

Kermit looked at the boy. "We'll be back soon. Hang in there..." Kermit said, before walking towards the door. Piggy began to walk too, before she noticed that Lily was staying in place.

"Lily?" She asked. "He'll be okay. You'll see him tomorrow."

"I can't believe I let this happen... I should have been there..." She whispered. Piggy put her hand on the girl's back.

"It's not your fault, dear. Go home, you need it. We all do." Piggy reassured her. Lily nodded, and kissed Walter gently on his face before getting up to leave.

Piggy and Lily left the room, leaving Walter's comatose body. Lily's kiss on his face still lingered there, causing his heart beat to go a bit faster.

* * *

Far outside the town of L.A., the two Russian men watched as their car burnt to ashes. The same car they used to hit Walter, earlier that day.

"Good thing we burnt it, eh?" The first one said. "Otherwise, they would have found us."

The second responded with a grunt. The other looked at him.

"What's your problem?"

"You know he's not dead." He responded. "Probably only in critical condition."

"Of course I know, stupid." The first one laughed. "That is part of Constantine's plan. Walter getting hit by our car is merely a warning, that there is more to come. And those Muppets can't stop it."

"So, what's next?" The second asked. The other kept his eyes on the burning car.

"Constantine is aloud one phone call to the outside world every three months." He said, scratching the grown hairs on his chin. "He'll use his very smartly, I'm sure."

The second Russian man rolled his eyes. "Can't we just slaughter the boy, and get it over with?" The first one broke his gaze from the burning car, and grabbed the second one by his collar.

"Listen, Arkady. We promised to follow Constantine's orders. This was merely a warning. We aren't just gonna kill him, we're going to make him pay for Constantine's defeat."

"Fine, Vitaly." Arkady responded. "So, what do we do next?" Vitaly let go of his shirt collar, and looked back at the burning car.

"We wait to make our next move. First, Constantine must make a little phone call with Kermit."


	16. Chapter 16

Lily placed a vase of get well flowers on the table in Walter's hospital room. She looked towards her boyfriend, he was still as he has been for the past few days. Motionless, and and at a steady breathing pace. His heart beat hadn't changed, but was stable.

Gary and Mary sat near his bed, making sure he was okay. As soon as they received the call from Kermit, they got to L.A. as fast as they could.

"I can't believe someone is doing this on purpose..." Gary said, looking at his brother. Mary rubbed her fiancé's arm, comforting him. Lily walked over and stood at the end of the bed.

"How are you guys holding up?" She asked, calmly. The initial shock of Walter's accident had dialled down a bit by now, so all of their grief was going at a slow pace.

"We're okay..." Mary said leaning her head into Gary's shoulder. "I mean not entirely, but we're pushing through..."

Lily shook her head, looking at her injured boyfriend. "I should have been with him." The engaged couple looked at her.

"Lily it's not your fault..." Mary assured her. Lily sighed, not taking her gaze off of Walter.

"I guess not..." She whispered. "I just hope he'll wake up, and be okay."

"He will be." Gary said, a little too abruptly. No one commented on his change in tone, though. Gary reached for his bag, and pulled out something.

"By the way, I found this." Gary said, handing a mini VCR tape to Lily. The girl took the tape, eyeing it.

"What's on here?" She asked.

"A video of you and Walter as kids." Gary said. "Thought it would help you handle everything that's going on right now."

Lily flipped the tape over, and saw some writing.

It read: _Walter and Lily, 7 years old._

Lily held the tape close to her. "Thanks, Gary. But, I don't have a VCR. I don't think a lot of people do, anymore..."

Gay then motioned behind Lily. She turned, and saw that the hospital room's television had a VCR. Lily swallowed, and approached it. She popped open the tape case, and put it in. The door opened, as soon as the tape had started.

"Hey." Kermit said, as him, Gonzo, Fozzie, and Piggy entered. "Thought we'd-"

The frog stopped when he saw all three of them keeping their eyes glued on the screen. The four Muppets looked at what they were watching, and saw a little boy on the screen. They came to sit near the television, realizing what they were watching.

"Walter say hi!" A voice behind the camera on the screen said. The little boy wearing a red and white striped shirt, jeans, and a red base ball cap looked familiar. Except for the fact that he had freckles, and was a lot younger.

 _Walter._ Kermit thought in his head, not wanting to disrupt the video.

"Dad, stop!" A little squeaky voice came out of the boy's mouth. All of them watched the screen, as little Walter hopped off the white picket fence he was sitting on and went walking across their childhood's house garden. Another kid came on screen, a little girl. She had short hazel hair, in miniature braided pig tails. She was wearing a yellow dress, and a matching clip in her hair.

"Looking good, little girl." Mary teased at Lily. Lily couldn't help but smile.

"I don't know what kind of fashion mind set I had as a six-year-old." She said, sort of cringing.

"What is this?" Fozzie asked.

"An old tape I found." Gary said, "of Walter and Lily as kids."

"What're you two doing?" Gary and Walter's father asked from behind the camera. The two little kids stood in front of it.

"Today, w-we're doing Walter and Lily's car wash." Little Walter's squeaky child voice said.

"And why is that?" He continued to ask. Little Walter played with his shirt, nervously. Gary couldn't help but smile at his little brother's behaviour as a kid. He reached out and touched his brother's shoulder, who still laid motionless in the bed.

"We're washing dad's car, cuz we split mud on the inside..." little Walter said.

"That's right." His father said, trying to hide his chuckling. "You guys got caught."

"Yeah..." little Lily's puny little girl voice, spoke. The sound coming from the little girl allowed everyone in the room to smile.

"You two were adorable." Piggy couldn't help say happily at Lily, despite the situation that has been happening.

Lily nodded in response. "It's funny, but I actually remember that day so clearly. And that was like seventeen years ago..."

As everyone went on watching and talking about Walter and Lily as kids, Kermit didn't say anything. He kept his eyes on the screen of little Walter and Lily. The two small children scrubbed Walter's father's car, laughing even though they were in trouble. So Walter has always been smily his whole life, after all. That's who he is.

Kermit turned his head to look at Walter in his hospital bed. His comatose body stayed the same as it had been since he got there. Kermit quickly turned his head back to the screen, and started to feel himself get heavy. A shaky feeling he'd been pushing aside for the better started to rise up in his chest, and he had no control over it. His heart tightened slightly, and that's when he felt it.

A single tear ran down the side of the frog's face.

Without thinking twice, Kermit quickly wiped it off his face. That got Piggy's attention.

"Kermie, are you alright?" Her gentle voice asked, allowing everyone else to look at him.

"Y-yes, excuse me." Kermit responded, politely yet nervously. He scrambled to his feet, and went out the door.

As soon as Kermit was out of the room, he pushed himself out of view from the window in the door. He leaned against the wall, and tried to get a hold of himself.

"Stop it." The frog said, feeling more tears run down his face. He wiped them away. "Stop, this isn't about you. You're suppose to be everyone's rock."

Kermit took a few breaths, and continued to think. His mind flashed from Walter lying in that hospital bed, to the little boy he once was that was happily washing a car with his current girlfriend as kids. He then thought of the Walter that had came and found Kermit and the Muppets. The one that helped save the studios, and their family. The one that brought them back together.

The one he wanted to be the future of the Muppets. The one that was family.

Emotion overtook the amphibian, and he slid down against the wall. He wiped his eyes for the third time, but it didn't stop his flowing tears.

"I should have stopped him." Kermit said. "I should have saved him..."

* * *

Later that day, the four Muppets that had visited Walter in the hospital went back to the studios. As much as they always wanted to stay by his side until he was better, they couldn't take a break from their lives. There was stuff to do.

But, the atmosphere wasn't the same. Even after all the years the Muppets had spent without Walter, all of a sudden not having him around felt weird. Like a part of them was missing. The thought alone of Walter being in the hospital was heartbreaking, and it was hurting everyone. Like Gonzo had said, the boy didn't deserve this. Not after everything he had done for them.

After his emotional break down in the hospital, Kermit spent most of the day in his office. He told everyone he had a lot of paper work to fill out, but they knew that wasn't the reason. Kermit was always one to put on the brave face, but they all knew this was killing him. Especially after Piggy, Gonzo, and Fozzie told some of the others the frog had a moment.

Kermit did in fact have a lot of work, but didn't have the energy or right mind space to do it. Instead, he just sat at his desk, staring down at the contract. He made a mini promise to himself. As soon as Walter was better and back at work, he was going to ask him to be his apprentice.

If, he got better.

Kermit saw a wet spot appear drop on the paper, as tears began to form again. Instead of being sad, he was annoyed. The frog shook his head, and put the contract in his drawer. He wiped his away his tears just in time for someone to knock.

"Who is it?" Kermit called to the door.

"It's Bunsen, Mr. Kermit." The scientist's voice said from the other side.

"Oh, come in." The amphibian said. The door opened, and Bunsen entered. The scientist secretly carried something behind his back.

"How can I help you, Bunsen?" Kermit asked, putting on a fake smile.

"I'd like to talk about Walter." Bunsen said. Kermit swallowed.

"Can this wait until another time, possibly?" The frog asked, trying to avoid the subject.

"Actually you'll want to see this now." Bunsen said. "I've been working on this for a quite a while, and decided to upgrade after what had happened to our young friend..."

"Bunsen, this isn't another one of your crazy inventions, is it?" Kermit asked, already knowing the answer.

"I'm glad you asked, yes it is!" Bunsen said, putting a yellow, box shaped machine with wires on the desk.

"Bunsen, I-"

"I call it, the Memory-Mind Searcher." Bunsen said, all excited. "And I want you to take it."

"Why?"

"I've been perfecting it for years, and now it finally has a good usage. If you hook these wire pads on the temples of Walter's forehead, and follow the instructions properly, you can enter his mind."

Kermit tilted his head, and gave Bunsen a weird look. "Enter his mind?"

"Yes, I know. It sounds humanely and physically impossible, but I've done it. Using this, it will send you to a distant memory in Walter's past, and then allow you to a mind flick on him."

"Mind flick?"

"Yes, a mind flick. The point in his memory in which you must intrigue his mind to wake up from his coma, and I assure you it will work."

Kermit studied the machine, looking at the papered instructions Bunsen had hand written.

"I don't know, Bunsen." Kermit said. "Even if it does work, you know your experiments can be...dangerous."

"Don't worry, Mr. Kermit." Bunsen said, not shaking his confidence. "I've tested it enough times on Beaker to know. It is one-hundred percent safe."

Kermit hesitated, he didn't trust this weird machine. Even from someone who has a Phd.

"Bunsen..."

"Mr. Kermit." Bunsen said, looking at the frog. "This will work. If I knew it couldn't, I wouldn't be asking you to use this on Walter..."

The sudden seriousness in the scientist's tone was all the Muppet leader needed to feel assured. True, Bunsen's experiments have definitely failed miserably in the past. But he had never heard such determination and seriousness in the scientist's voice.

"Okay." Kermit said. "As long as it doesn't hurt him, I'll try it..."

Bunsen nodded, feeling excited again. "You'll be very happy with the results. This machine will get Walter out if his coma."

When Bunsen left, Kermit just continued to stare at the machine. A million thoughts raced through his head. This could get Walter out of his coma. According to Bunsen, it WILL get Walter out of his coma. But knowing Bunsen, his experiments always took a turn on Beaker. What were the chances of it happening to Walter?

Kermit picked up the instructions Bunsen had written. Besides the few steps that were there, there was also a little message.

 _It will work. Have faith._

Kermit put the instructions down. Who was he kidding? If this was a chance to save Walter, he had to do it. His instincts were telling him to, but were also fearful. His best approach would be not to tell anyone. They would want to come along, and Kermit needed to keep this on a down-low.

The frog's thoughts were then interrupted, as soon as his office phone rang. Kermit picked it up.

"Hi-ho, Kermit the frog here..." He said, a little less chirpier than usual.

"Hello, Kermit." A familiar, yet sickly voice spoke. Kermit's throat dried up, again. The last time he spoke with a weird contact, is when he got that threat against Walter. But this time, Kermit knew exactly who he was talking to.

"Constantine." Kermit said, without any doubt.

"Glad to hear from me, old friend?" The evil frog asked. Kermit didn't respond, and instead played things smart. As he held the office phone up, he picked up his cell phone and pressed record, holding it near by. He needed evidence for the police.

"I hope you've been enjoying my little show..." Constantine continued. Kermit felt his heart fall heavy, but wouldn't give in. He couldn't let Constantine know that his act of sending people after Walter was hurting all of them.

"How, you fiend. How are you able to contact me?" Kermit said, trying to intimidate the opposing frog.

"For your information, Mr. Muppet. The Gulag allows me one phone call to the outside world every three months. It's the best I can get out of a life time in prison. You should feel special that I'm wasting it on you..."

Kermit shifted in his chair, uncomfortably.

"So, I assume Walter has come in contact with my little friends?"

Kermit swallowed. "Yes. Now tell me what you want with him. Because whatever it is, you're not getting it."

The Muppet leader heard Constantine laugh at the other end. "Oh, Kermit. It's not that I want anything from him, but want to get rid of him."

"Why?"

"Is it not obvious? If Walter was never there, you would still be in the gulag. He's the one who dared to figure out I was not the real Kermit. He foiled my plans, and now he will pay the price. He will die..."

"You're goons aren't getting anywhere near him, anymore." Kermit snapped back, leaning forward on his desk. "Not as long as I'm here."

"Ha." Constantine snarled. "Enjoy your little friend while he's around, because it won't be for long. See you in another world, Kermit..."

And with that, the phone call ended. In fury, Kermit slammed the phone onto it's stand and stopped recording with his cell phone. He wanted to waste not time in calling the police to show the recording.

He picked up the phone once again, ready to dial the cops. However, he stayed frozen in place when he looked at Bunsen's machine. Maybe, he shouldn't call right away. Kermit carefully put the phone down, and studied the machine.

He sighed, and pulled out a black backpack, putting the machine in.

"I can't believe I'm doing this..." He said to himself, as he left the office. If this machine could really get Walter out of his coma, the frog would try.


	17. Chapter 17

"Visiting time closes in an hour, sir." A doctor said to Kermit. The frog was at the hospital, looking at Walter in his bed. He made sure to come at a time when no one else would be visiting him.

"Okay, thank you." Kermit said. As soon as the doctor left, Kermit pulled out the Memory-Mind Searcher and placed on the bedside table.

"I can't believe I'm doing this..." Kermit mumbled, picking up the instructions Bunsen had hand-written. The amphibian did in fact feel ridiculous. Getting Walter out of his coma with this weird machine was an unnerving thing. But, he would try.

Kermit read the instructions.

 _1) Hook the two wire pads on the temples of the subject._

The frog nodded, and carefully hooked the wired pads on Walter's temples, careful not to further injure his bandaged forehead.

 _2)_ _Press the red button_

Kermit further looked at the paper, but saw no more than two steps written by the scientist.

"That's it?" Kermit said, pressing the red button. As soon as he hit it, a purple beaming light came shooting out, startling Kermit. The purple light then formed into a hologram of Bunsen.

"Hello, Mr. Kermit."

"Bunsen?"

"I am not the real Dr. Bunsen. I'm merely a hologram that he had programmed. I'm your guide to entering the mind of the subject. Preferably today, waking Walter up from his coma."

Kermit shrugged. "If it works. It won't hurt Walter, right?"

The hologram Bunsen smiled. "Of course not, sir. But waking him up from his coma might be difficult."

The frog nodded. "I understand. Let's just do this quickly..."

"Gladly." The hologram spoke, reaching his hand out. "Take my hand, and brace yourself."

"Oh boy..." Kermit said nervously, reaching for the hologram's hand. As soon as he touched the purple light, the frog felt his body lift off the ground faster than ever. Everything around him was washed away with a white, blinding light. His body presumably felt like it was stretching into nothing, carrying him somewhere. From what Bunsen told him, he was suppose to be entering Walter's memory. But how did that work?

The fast motions all stopped when Kermit felt his feet gently land on a concrete ground. He felt a head rush, but managed to keep his balance. He squinted his frog eyes open, to see where he was. It was a suburban street with white picket fence houses. Like a cute little town right out of a story book, or something.

"Where are we...?" Kermit asked, a bit dizzy from the short trip.

"Smalltown, Idaho." The hologram said. "In 1995, when Walter was eight years old."

Kermit looked towards the hologram. "This is where he grew up? I'm gonna see him as a kid?"

The hologram nodded. "Yes. But here, put these on." The hologram reached his hand out, and a coat and fake beard appeared. He handed it to Kermit.

"Why do I need a disguise?" Kermit said, taking the jacket and beard.

"This year is 1995. The Muppets hadn't completely split up, so you were still a well-known celebrity. Even in a tiny town, like this."

Kermit nodded, and carefully put the coat on. He put the beard on too, and shifted in it a bit. It was itchy and uncomfortable.

"Ok, now where do I-"

Before Kermit could ask another question, the hologram disappeared into thin air. Kermit whipped his head around.

"Excuse me, Bunsen?" He called. "I mean...hologram of Bunsen?"

There was no response, but a few people that passed by stared at the frog with the beard and coat that was talking to the air.

"Crazy old man..." Someone said, passing by Kermit.

"Pardon me?" Kermit said, but the person had already gone. The frog sighed. "Guess I just have to go find Walter, somewhere..."

Kermit continued to make his way down the suburban street, into the town area. There were shops and markets everywhere, and people all around. It was a cute little town, but Kermit still didn't know how he was going to find Walter. Especially if he was a eight-year-old. Who knows where he is.

The frog walked down the side walk, looking at a few shops. He then stopped when he came by a book store, and saw a book cover in the window with Kermit's face on it. That's right, the Muppets did a lot of book publishing in 1995.

"Did they have to use such a bad photo of me?" Kermit said, leaning forward to get a better look at the book in the window. His thoughts were disrupted when someone short bashed against him.

"Pardon me, I-" Kermit looked to see who the short person that bumped into him was, and stopped his words when he saw. A little boy in a red shirt and overalls, with a red baseball cap and freckles stared up at the frog with big eyes.

 _Walter._ Kermit thought to himself, careful not to say his name out loud. He recognized Walter as a little boy from the home video.

"S-sorry, mister!" Little Walter's kid voice spoke, as he adjusted his baseball cap. Kermit searched for words.

"It...it's okay." Kermit said, astonished seeing Walter as a little boy right in front of him. "Why are you running?"

"I have to go!" Little Walter said, "to see someone. See ya, mister!" The little boy ran past Kermit, and the frog watched him take off.

"Hi, Mr. Mack!" Little Walter said, running by the butcher shop.

"Hey there, kid!" A young man with a brown moustache responded. "Tell your father I say hi!"

"His father?" Kermit said.

"That's right." Someone behind him said. Kermit jumped, and turned to see who it was. The hologram of Bunsen stood behind him.

"You scared the daylight out of me." Kermit said, breathing heavily. "Walter is going to see his dad?"

"Yes." The hologram nodded. "This was the day his dad came back from another military retreat. Walter was just at the park with his friends, he forgot to come home on time for his arrival."

Kermit looked towards where Walter had ran, and saw that the boy was already gone.

"Where do I find him, now?" Kermit asked.

"Hold on." The hologram said. He snapped his fingers, and Kermit felt his body lift and disappear into the air, again. As soon as he landed, he was on a different suburban street than before. He saw Walter make his way onto the pathway of a house.

"Dad!" Walter said, running up the path.

"Hey, sport!" A man in a military suit said, picking his son up who bouldered right into his arms. "How's my soldier boy?"

"Great!" Little Walter said, happily. "I-I mean, sir, yes sir!"

Walter's father merely laughed, and rubbed his son's head. It shifted the boy's red baseball cap, which he once again adjusted. Kermit watched the two, closely. Walter's eyes filled with fascination every time he looked at his father.

"By the way," Walter's dad said. "Lily came by looking with you, why don't you go say hi?"

"Okay." Walter said, not breaking his smile.

"Lily." Kermit remembered. "She grew up here, too."

"Mhm." The hologram responded.

Walter walked off his lawn, onto the sidewalk. Just in time for a little girl to pull up with her scooter. She had small brown pigtails, a blue skirt, and a pink polka dotted shirt.

"Hi, Walter." The little girl's voice, spoke.

"Hi, Lily." Little Walter said. "My dad came home, today."

Little Lily gave the cutest little girl smile, and jumped off her scooter. "Really? Yay!"

"Yea, he's inside."

"W-what does your dad do in the army? Is he like a fighter...?" Little Lily's innocent, little girl-self asked.

"He's a lieutenant." The little boy responded.

"Is that like a fighter man?"

"I dunno. But it sounds cool." Little Walter said. Kermit smiled at the two little kids. It was unbelievable how they grew up to date each other sixteen years later.

"So, how do I wake him up?" Kermit asked the hologram. The hologram looked at young Walter.

"It is not the time yet, we need to wait a few hours for the right moment. But to make things move faster, we'll go forward in time." The hologram said, snapping his fingers.

Little Walter and Lily then disappeared, and the whole neighbourhood became dark, as the sun rushed down. Kermit clutched his head, overwhelmed by the change in time.

"I brought you a few hours ahead." The hologram said. Kermit felt a breeze pass by him, and he looked down. His coat and fake beard were gone.

"Where did my disguise go?" Kermit asked.

"You won't need it, now." The hologram responded. "Come on."

The two of them walked to the white picket fence on the side of the house, squinting their eyes through the darkness of the night. The hologram carefully opened the gate, to the side garden. They approached an open window, and there was a small tent set up right outside of it.

The hologram approached the tent, and opened the flaps a bit. Kermit saw young Walter sleeping in a sleeping bag, inside.

"Why is he sleeping in a tent?" Kermit whispered.

"He was talking to his father, earlier." The hologram explained. "His dad talked about how he spent nights under the stars in the army. Walter wanted to come with him, but told him he needed to stay safe at home. Walter being the kid he was, decided to do it himself.

Kermit looked at young Walter, he shivered in his sleeping bag. But, he still had his red baseball cap on.

"His parents didn't discover until two hours after his bedtime that he was sleeping outside." The hologram continued. "They put him to bed, but he was sick for a week from the cold."

The frog shook his head. "Maybe I can help them out..." Kermit said. He kneeled down in the tent, and carefully took the young sleeping Walter in his arms. The little boy didn't shift at all, he was a heavy sleeper. He was small, and warm.

The frog made his way to the window, and climbed in, careful not to drop the child. When he was inside, he put him in his bed and put the blanket over him.

"You know that won't alter the past." The hologram pointed out. "We're in Walter's mind, so it might only trigger his memory a bit."

"I know." Kermit said, watching over the little boy. All of a sudden, the ground started to shake. Kermit was sure that the boy would wake up, but he didn't. The frog had a sinking feeling the world was shaking for a reason.

"What's happening?" Kermit asked the hologram.

"It's Walter." The hologram said. "You need to give him the mind-flick, now. He's starting to drift from us."

"D-drift?" Kermit asked, nervously.

The hologram swallowed. "His heartbeat is slowing down. You need to wake him up from his coma."

Kermit looked at the sleeping boy in the bed, his mind flashing to the current Walter that was currently unconscious in the hospital bed.

"Walter, wake up!" Kermit said, shaking the little boy's shoulder. The world continued to shake, and the bedroom walls began to crack. A blinding white light peered through. Kermit continued to shake the boy.

"Walter, come on! You need to wake up, we need you back!"

A booming sound began to pound in Kermit's ear drums, and he knew exactly what it was. It was Walter's heart beat, that was in fact slowing down.

"Walter!" Kermit said, starting to be blinded by the white light.

"WALTER!" He yelled for the final time, before feeling himself being lifted away. It went dark.

Everything was quiet, and Walter couldn't see anything. He felt nothing, and didn't know where he was. He lifted his head, and saw a bright, distant light.

 _Where am I?_

No Response.

 _Am...am I dead?_

 _Walter..._ A deep voice responded.

 _H-hello?_

 _Walter, you need to go back._

 _D-dad?_

 _Walter, they need you. It's time to go back._

 _Wait, dad!_

 _Go, son. Your family needs you, now. It's all on you. Fight through, they're waiting._

 _Dad, no! I want to stay with you!_

 _Go, Kermit is waiting..._

 _Kermit?_

Walter thought back. The most he remembered was fighting, and then there was a speeding car...

 _We were fighting..._

The bright light became brighter and brighter, and overtook Walter's eye sight. He clenched his eyes shut, until he started to feel pain. In his shoulder, and his head. It was cold, but he felt himself breath slightly. A breeze passed by him, and he shivered. But, his body still shot with pain.

The boy squinted his eyes open, and the light hurt his vision. He kept them open though, until they adjusted. When he saw clearly, he was staring at a white ceiling. All he heard was the beeping of a monitor.

"Walter...?" Someone spoke. Walter turned his head very slowly to where the voice came from, trying not to hurt his tight shoulder. It was painful. When he looked, there was a green blob. His vision was still blurry. He blinked a few times, until the silhouette formed into Kermit's figure.

"Walter?" Kermit asked, again. The boy didn't respond, he just looked at him with tired eyes. "Can you hear me?"

Walter wanted to respond, but felt a plastic mask on his face, preventing him from doing so. He didn't want to worry the frog, so he merely nodded his head in response.

Kermit sighed. "Thank good-"

Before the frog could finish his sentence, a few doctors came running in.

"Sir, please step away from the patient."

"W-what?" Kermit said, not immediately doing what he was told.

"Sir, he just woke up. We need make sure he is stable. Please, we need you to leave."

"B-but, I can't leave him. He'll be confused-"

"Don't worry sir, we'll make sure he's taking care of. You can see him first thing, tomorrow." A doctor began to push Kermit away from the hospital bed, the frog resisting just a bit. He wasn't read to leave Walter, when he just woke up.

"Ker...mit..." Walter all of a sudden spoke, getting everyone's attention.

"Y-yeah?" The frog asked, resisting the doctor that was pushing him.

Walter breathed, trying to continue speaking. "I'm...sorry..." Kermit felt himself struck with pain, hearing the boy say that. The frog completely remembered that the last thing Walter probably remembered was their fight, right before he was hit by that car. And now he just got out of a coma, and was apologizing. The amphibian wanted to stay, but the doctor pushed him out of the room.

"No, please." Kermit said. "You don't understand, before he was hit-"

"Sir, I assure you." The doctor said. "We will make sure he is okay. There are some things we need to take care of now that he is awake. Please, you can come back tomorrow morning."

Kermit nodded, feeling himself fall heavy. "Okay..." The doctor disappeared back into Walter's room, leaving Kermit alone in the hall.

The frog pulled out his phone, to make some calls. He held the phone to his ear, slightly shaking. His mind raced, with everything that had just happened.

"Kermie?" The other end answered. The frog put his attention to the phone.

"Piggy, Walter is awake..."


	18. Chapter 18

"Walter! We're coming, buddy!" Fozzie yelled, running down the hall of the hospital. It was the day after Walter had just got out of his coma. Kermit informed the others, and decided to bring a few.

"Fozzie." Kermit said, as him, Scooter, Piggy, Rowlf, and Gonzo followed the screaming bear. "You don't need to yell."

"Sorry!" Fozzie called over his shoulder. "I just can't believe he woke up!"

"Yeah." Scooter agreed. "But, how? You were there Kermit, did anything unusual happen before he woke up?"

All other five Muppets looked at the frog. Kermit thought about the machine Bunsen had made, that Kermit had used to save Walter from his coma. Kermit thought it would be best for that to be a secret between him, and Dr. Bunsen himself.

"No, not really." Kermit finally responded.

As soon as the six of them reached the door to Walter's hospital room, Kermit peaked into the window. Gary, Mary, and Lily were already inside. As for Walter himself, he looked better. As in, fully awake. He no longer had the oxygen mask on, and was sitting up in bed and breathing on his own. He still had a bandage on his forehead and shoulder, but was no longer shirtless, and had a hospital gown on.

"Listen, guys." Kermit said, looking at the other five. "I want to talk to Walter alone for a second, then you guys can come in. Is that okay?"

"Sure, Kermit." Gonzo answered with the others nodding.

The frog sighed, and turned back to the door. It was so hard to be forced to leave the hospital yesterday, after Walter had just woke up. Kermit barely had time to see if he was okay.

"And guys?" Kermit said, before going in. They all looked at him. "When Walter's out of the hospital, I'm asking him to be my apprentice."

That being said, the amphibian walked into the room and closed the door behind him, leaving his friends by surprise. The four people in the room looked up at his entrance, and Lily was the first to speak up.

"Walter?" She said, her boyfriend looking towards her. "We're gonna go see your doctor, okay?"

Walter nodded, and watched as his brother, girlfriend, and soon to be sister-in-law left the room. It was suddenly awkward, with just Kermit and Walter. The boy wouldn't stand it, though.

"Listen, Kerm-"

Before Walter could finish, Kermit had tackled his younger friend into a hug. Walter still sat in his bed, staying stiff and uncomfortable in Kermit's surprise hug. His eyes were wide, and he didn't really know what to do.

"Kermit." Walter said, tensing up. "My shoulder..."

"Oh, sorry." The frog said, pulling back. Walter rubbed his shoulder, making sure the bandages were still in place.

"You gave us quite the scare there..." Kermit said, feeling more relieved.

Walter nodded, causing his brown locks to fall over the bandage on his forehead. The boy brushed them out of his face.

"I'm sorry...about what happened..." Walter said, his voice sort of hoarse. "I was overwhelmed, and-"

"No, I'm sorry." Kermit interrupted. "We got into a fight, and then this happened. I should have just kept things the same."

"It's okay." Walter responded. "I don't plan on protesting against anything, now. If I need to hide from the public and the studios, I will..."

"No." The frog said, taking Walter by shock. "I still want you around the studios. At most, you can still stay with Piggy and I."

Walter nodded, thankful that the frog wasn't trying to be too controlling as he was before Walter got into his accident.

"Or, maybe you can stay with Lily..." Kermit suggested, trying to be open. "As long as-"

Kermit was interrupted, when the door swung open. Fozzie, Scooter, Piggy, Rowlf, and Gonzo all came piling in. Fozzie was the first to run up to Walter.

"Walter!" The bear exclaimed, hugging him.

"Ah! Fozzie my shoulder!" Walter squeaked out through the pain. Gonzo and Rowlf quickly took Fozzie off, and Walter rubbed his shoulder.

"Sorry..." The bear said.

"It's okay." Walter responded, sort of smiling.

"Sorry we came in early, Kermie." Piggy said. "We couldn't wait."

"How you feeling, boy?" Rowlf asked Walter.

"I've been better." Walter shrugged. "I mean...someone purposely hit me with their car."

They all took Walter's comment by surprise.

"Wait, you know?" Scooter asked.

"Well, yeah." Walter responded. "I get a threat, and then a speeding car hits me the next day? Come on, they clearly hit me on purpose."

"My words exactly..." Kermit agreed.

"So, did they get arrested?" Walter asked.

"No..." Gonzo said, sadly. "They got away..."

"But we know who's behind all this." Kermit said. They all looked at him.

"We do?" Fozzie said. Piggy nodded, and stepped in.

"Yes." Piggy agreed. "It's that stupid Russian frog."

"Constantine?" Walter asked.

"Not him exactly, but he is the planner behind it all." Kermit responded. "He's sending goons to go after you. I think they're the ones that hit you."

"But, why only me?"

"We don't know why, yet." Scooter shrugged.

"Actually, I do." Kermit said, swallowing nervously. "I...I got a call from Constantine."

"What!?" They all screamed in shock. Kermit nodded.

"That's impossible!" Walter stated. "He's in prison for life!"

"Yeah, but he get's a call to the outside world every three months." Kermit explained. "And he chose my office, for his first one."

"What did he say?" Rowlf asked.

Kermit looked towards Walter. "He's going after you, because he blames you for everything that happened in Europe."

"Everything that happened in Europe?" Fozzie asked. "But, he tried to replace you, Kermit."

"Yes Fozzie, but Walter was the one that figured his plans out." The frog sighed. "If he hadn't suspected all of it, Constantine would have gotten away with his plans. But instead, he's in the gulag."

"Oh my goodness..." Piggy said, putting her hand over her mouth.

"Did you tell the police, yet?" Scooter asked.

"Yeah, I called them last night." The frog reassured everyone. "They're looking all over the city for Russian fugitives, and also sending people over to the gulag in Russia to interrogate Constantine."

"Okay." Scooter nodded. "So until we have some more details on where they are, we'll make sure the paparazzi doesn't know. It's probably for the best."

"Too late..." Walter said. Everyone looked at him, and Walter pulled out a magazine.

"Mary said it was published this morning..." The boy said, handing the magazine to Kermit. The frog looked at the cover, and the others gathered around him.

It read:

 _Muppet Boy, Walter, hit by car outside their home studios. Young Muppet received a threat no more than 24 hours, before._

"Heh, Muppet Boy." Fozzie chuckled. "It has a nice ring to it, you think?"

"How did the press find out? We haven't told anybody about any of this!" Gonzo said, exasperated.

"It's Constantine, for sure." Walter said. They all looked at him. "It has to be part of his plan. He told his goons to leak the news to the press, and intimidate us."

"So, what do we do?" Rowlf asked.

"I guess..." Kermit sighed. "We be upfront. If they ask questions we answer. After all, at least people might keep an eye out for these guys. Especially any fans."

Walter nodded, and tried to brighten up the room a bit.

"How was the show at the Orpheum Theatre?" Walter asked.

"Pretty good!" Fozzie said, excitedly. "But, Gonzo did almost blow up Olivia Newton-John."

"I did not!" Gonzo defended himself. "A bull almost ran over her..."

Walter smiled, happy to be back. Being in a coma surprisingly took a lot out of you, but being with his Muppet family felt good.

"Sorry you had to miss it, buddy." Rowlf said to Walter.

"It's fine." The boy shrugged, not really upset. "I was in a coma, that's a pretty good excuse."

"When do you get out of the hospital?" Piggy asked.

"In a few days." Walter said. "I lost a lot of blood, and they need to get my tests back. It shouldn't be long, though."

They all nodded, happy that their young member of the Muppets was awake again. It had been a hard week with it all.

That was why, Kermit was ready. Before anything else happened. As soon as Walter was better, he was going to tell him that he wants to promote him as future head of the Muppets. It's what he wants.

And it's what Jim would want.

/~/~/~/

The next few days was a big weight lift off of all the Muppets. Now that Walter was undeniably going to be okay, they all felt relieved. However, not completely. Since the information was clear on who was doing this, they still felt as thought they had to look over their shoulders every once in a while.

Walter made a perfect recovery. His blood levels were back to normal, and his head felt better again. He left the hospital with a taped shoulder, as it turned out to be slightly fractured. But, it wasn't too much that he would need a full cast, or anything.

Unexpectedly, Walter was still in danger. It was important that he would stay with others, so he continued to stay with Kermit and Piggy. At first, he was going to stay with Lily, but the boy could sense that the idea was making Kermit nervous. Not that Kermit didn't trust Lily, but the fact that he just needed to keep an eye on his family when in drastic situations. But after their fight that had happened before Walter's accident, Kermit was willing to back off a bit when it came to Walter spending some quality time with his girlfriend. Even in hard times, they needed their space. And as Piggy had lectured to Kermit, young love was unmanageable.

Walter encouraged Gary and Mary to go back to Smalltown. Even with everything as bad as it may have been, Walter knew that the engaged couple had a lot of planning to do. Not only were there wedding preparations to still set up, but Gary needed to begin preparing for his new career, and Mary's job was in need of her too. After countless debates, Walter had convinced them that he had a big enough support system in L.A. from his Muppet family, and would call if there was anything.

"The wedding is only in a few months." Walter said, talking on the phone with his brother. He sat on the bed in the guest room at Kermit and Piggy's house. "You nervous?"

"To be honest, no. Well, at least not yet." Gary said from the other end. "Got any best man advice?"

Walter smiled, glad to be his brother's best man. "Not really. But seriously, I'm here if there's something that needs to be done."

"Right back at you." Gary said, reffering to the Constantine situation. "Call me if something is up."

"Will do."

As for Kermit, he still had something else to do.

The day Walter came back to work, was the day when Kermit was ready to tell the youngster his offer.

"Guys." Kermit said to Piggy, Gonzo, Fozzie, Rowlf, and Scooter. "The time is now."

"Anything to say before breaking the news to Walter, and ending the JHC committee?" Rowlf asked. Kermit nodded.

"Yes." The frog began. "Thank you all for helping me with this, I couldn't have done it without your support. And I know that now is the time when I ask Walter to be my apprentice, but there's one more thing I need from you guys."

"What is it, Kermit?" Fozzie asked.

"Scooter, bring Walter to my office so I can tell him. The rest of you, start spreading the word about this to the other Muppets when I talk to Walter. It's about time everyone knows our intentions, and who will be the potential future leader of our family."

"For sure, chief." Scooter said, going off to find Walter. The others began to spread around the studio, and Kermit started to make his way to his office.

"Now's the time." Kermit said to himself. "What'll I even say?"

Scooter went to the auditorium of the theatre, in search for the young Muppet Boy. That name was really starting to catch on. The stage manager went into the seating area, and saw Walter sitting and texting. Probably chatting with Lily.

"Muppet Boy-uh...I mean Walter?" Scooter asked. Walter looked up.

"Aw man, that name is starting to catch on, isn't it?" Walter said, reffering to the article nickname.

"Yeah, sorry that might stick around." Scooter said, trying to hide his laughter. "Uh, Kermit wants to see you in his office."

"Oh, okay." Walter said, not really suspecting anything surprising. After everything he'd been through, nothing really came at him with a surprise. But unaware to him, that would break within a few moments.

When they reached Kermit's office, Scooter stopped.

"He's right in there." Scooter said, with a slightly too big of a smile. Walter arched a brow.

"Uh, okay?" The boy said, about to go in.

"And Walter?" Scooter said, before leaving. The boy looked towards him. "Please take it into huge consideration."

The stage manager quickly left before Walter could ask what the heck that was suppose to mean. Walter shook his head.

"Geez, you hang around the hospital for a while and people act totally different." Walter said to himself, turning the handle of the office door. When he entered, Kermit sat at his desk, looking at two different documents. From a far, Walter didn't really know what they were, but assumed they were important by the look on Kermit's face.

The frog looked up, and saw Walter.

"You wanted to see me?" The boy asked.

"Yep." Kermit said, a little too quickly. He seemed nervous. "Sit down."

Walter went and sat on the chair in front of Kermit's desk. The frog seemed nervous, but not in a totally bad way. Maybe, he had good news.

"Uh." Walter began, a bit freaked out by the nervous behaviour. "Did the police find something?"

"Unfortunately, no. That's not what this is about." Kermit said.

"Did I do something wrong?" Walter asked.

"No." Kermit said, shaking his head. "Actually, the complete opposite."

"I did something good?" Walter asked.

"Well, I'm pretty sure getting the Muppets back together, saving our studios, and stopping Constantine from destroying us is pretty good of you to do." The frog said, smiling. Walter couldn't help but feel his heart pound a bit. That compliment came flying out of no where.

"Okay." Walter said, accepting the commendation. "So, what's going on?"

Kermit leaned forward a bit on his desk. He looked down at the contract made for Walter agreeing to be Kermit's apprentice and future of the Muppets. The frog looked back up at the young man sitting in front of him.

"Walter," he began. "Did I ever tell you what Jim told me before he passed...?"

 **Cliffhanger. Make sure to come back, when Kermit breaks the news to Walter!**


	19. Chapter 19

"Walter, did I ever tell you what Jim told me before he passed...?" Kermit asked the young Muppet.

Walter sat in front of Kermit's desk, wondering what was so urgent. But he was taken back from that question. Walter thought about it for a moment. He didn't recall actually having a full conversation with Kermit about Jim Henson. Walter never brought it up, because he didn't know if it would be disrespectful, or not.

"Uh..." Walter looked for words. "I don't think so."

Kermit nodded, and cleared his throat. "I wrote it down, so I would never forget. I still kept it through the time the Muppets were broken up. He told me that the Muppets begin with the two of us, and continue with someone else."

Walter didn't say anything in return. He felt honoured that Kermit was sharing Jim's sacred words of wisdom with him. The young Muppet thought it would be best to just keep listening.

"I still remember when it all began." Kermit continued. "Jim rallied me to be the leader. Leaping from the swamp life to Hollywood wasn't exactly easy, but he helped me. I met everyone else, and we all just clicked. We became friends, and then family. I met Piggy. Everything just felt on top."

Walter felt intrigued by Kermit's talk, but still didn't seem totally on track.

"Kermit?" Walter asked. "I want nothing more than to hear about how it all began. But, what does this have to do with me?"

Kermit played with the contract on his desk. He took the original he signed years before, agreeing to be the leader of the Muppets and being Jim's apprentice. He handed it to Walter.

Walter carefully took the document. His eyes widened when he realized what it was. "Wow." The boy said, astonished. "I'm surprise to still have something like this after so long."

Kermit nodded. "It's pretty amazing. But it also needs to be kept safe. Until of course, a new one is made."

Walter looked up from the document. "A new one...?"

Kermit inched forward in his chair, behind his desk. "Walter, you know that I'm not gonna be around forever..."

Walter sighed, and gave the frog a look of slight exasperation. "Kermit, you can be direct with me. I'm not five years old, anymore."

The frog wiped a bit of sweat off his forehead. He was getting nervous.

"I know." Kermit said. "I'm just trying to figure out how to say this."

"Say what?"

"Well," Kermit said. "Have you ever wondered what will happen to the Muppets when I get really old? Or, more like when all of us get old?"

Walter thought about it for a moment, and shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. I kind of just thought there would be a day when things end, eventually."

"Not unless there's someone younger, and qualified to take my position." Kermit said, eyeing the young Muppet.

Walter let out a bit of a scoff. "Yeah, but who could honestly live up to everything you've done?"

"Someone amazing."

"Yeah, but who?"

The frog played with the new contract on his desk, assigned for Walter. He took in a slow breath.

"I was only a bit younger than you were when Jim rallied me to be his apprentice." Kermit explained. "He chose me, not for potential. He chose me, because a big part of him knew that I could carry on everything he created."

Walter played with the sleeves of his zip up hoodie, nervously.

"I see everything he saw in me, in you. But also so much more." Kermit said to the younger Muppet. Walter held his breath. "I'm going to be around for a long, long time. But eventually, the Muppets are going to need a new heir. Someone who can create a whole new generation, but still carry on our family legacy."

Walter felt his heart pound. Kermit continued to choose his words carefully. "And I think I've found that person."

The boy's eyes went wide. "Wait a second..." he said. "Are...are you?"

"Walter," Kermit said. "I want you to be my apprentice. I want you to be our future leader."

Walter immediately felt himself go lightheaded, but resisted himself from fainting. His legs and arms went numb, and he felt everything practically disappear around him. _Oh my gosh._ Walter thought in his head. _Is he serious?_ Kermit had been his idol since he was a kid. It was unbelievable enough that he became a Muppet within a short amount of time. But, Kermit just asked him to be his apprentice. To be the future leader.

"I didn't really expect you to respond right away." Kermit said, snapping Walter back to reality. "But, I'm picking you for a reason."

Walter swallowed. He subtly nodded his head, encouraging Kermit to continue.

"I discussed this with a few of the others, already. But when I met you, I knew you were a Muppet by heart. And as I got to know you, I saw the leader that you really are."

Kermit leaned forward on his desk.

"I saw Jim in you..."

Walter didn't realize how long he had been holding his breath, and exhaled. He tried to steady his breathing.

"I know this is all overwhelming." Kermit said. "But I had a contract made. It would agree to the same stuff I agreed to with Jim. The only difference is that I'd be training you years in advance, rather than on the fly. Jim had to teach me on the job."

"Kermit," Walter finally spoke. "You are sure about this...right? This is me you're talking to."

Kermit couldn't help but let out a little chortle. "Don't worry, I'm well aware that I'm offering this to you."

"Okay..." Walter breathed. "How...what..."

"You don't have to decide this, right away." Kermit said. "We have all the time in the world."

Kermit then picked up the new contract and handed it to Walter. "This is yours."

"Are you sure?" Walter said, taking it.

"Yes." Kermit said. "Read through it, and just think. If you have any questions or concerns, I'm always here."

Walter nodded, and tried to relax in his chair a bit. Kermit noticed his tension.

"You know this is a good thing, right?" The frog asked, concerned. Walter looked up at his boss.

"Of course I do." Walter responded. "It's just a lot to take in."

"Well if it's any consolation, I know you're right for the job."

Walter gave a small smile, and relaxed fully. He looked at the contract once more, and carefully held it in his hands.

"Who can I and cannot tell?" Walter asked.

"Anyone but the press." Kermit said. "I'm guessing you have a brother to call?"

"Yeah." Walter chuckled. "He's gonna freak."

Kermit smiled, feeling relieved. Walter was taking this a lot better than he thought. Once again, he was proven to be a good leader.

"Take your time to think about this." Kermit advised. "This is your decision, and nobody else's."

Walter nodded. "Thanks, Kermit."

Without warning, the office door came busting open. Walter and Kermit both jumped at the loud sound, and looked towards who had entered. Fozzie and Scooter both stood there, looking out of breath.

"Guys, this isn't really-" Kermit began.

"Sorry, chief." Scooter interrupted. "But, you might want to see this."

"What is it?" Kermit asked.

"There's a million reporters outside the studio, asking questions!" Fozzie said.

"Don't worry." Kermit assured them. "They're probably curious about Walter's accident. We'll just push through."

Scooter and Fozzie exchanged a look.

"Uh, that's not exactly why they're here..." Scooter said, nervously.

Walter arched a brow. "Why are they here?"

Scooter looked towards Kermit. "Did you tell him, yet?" Kermit nodded in response, and Walter held up the contract.

Scooter gave a look to Fozzie. "Well, Fozzie?"

"Uh..." The bear was nervous. "I told the press about your decision..."

"What?" Kermit said, a bit of anger in his voice.

"You said to tell everyone else." Fozzie defended.

"Yeah, I meant the rest of the Muppets." Kermit explained, trying not to get frustrated. "Fozzie, I gave you explicit instructions to not tell the paparazzi, yet."

"Sorry..." Fozzie said. Kermit sighed.

"Okay, 80's Robot is coming soon anyway. Walter, you don't have to-"

"Don't worry." Walter assured the frog. "I'll find a way pass them."

"How?" Scooter asked. "They're practically at every entrance."

Walter shrugged his shoulders. "Push through."

Kermit sighed, and put the old contract into his desk. Walter carefully folded the new one, and put it safely in his zip up hoodie.

"Okay, let's go." Kermit said.

/~/~/~/

"What did you just say!?" Gary's voice yelled through the phone. Walter made it to Lily's apartment, and had his brother and Mary on speaker phone. He thought it would be best to tell all three of them at once.

"Gary, for the third time." Walter said, slowly. "Kermit wants me as his apprentice, as the heir of being leader of the Muppets."

"Walter." Mary's voice said through the phone. "This is amazing!"

"What did you say?" Lily asked her boyfriend, squeezing his arm. Walter hesitated.

"Well, he purposely gave me time to think and just read through the contract. After all, I don't think this is an immediate response kind of thing."

"Well, no duh." Lily said. "But, do you know what your answer will be?"

Walter didn't say anything at first. He played with the contract in his hands, and Lily eyed him nervously.

"Lily?" Walter?" Mary's voice asked. "You still there?"

"Yeah, we are." Walter answered.

"You okay, buddy?" Gary asked his brother.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine." Walter assured him. "Just kind of shock, and not entirely sure."

"Of course, but don't you want this?" Mary asked. Walter couldn't help but give a bit of an eye roll.

"Yeah, I want this." He simply said. "But, I'm also not entirely sure."

"Walter, remember." Lily said. "If he didn't think you were right for the job, he wouldn't be offering this."

Walter looked again at the contract, thinking about the whole idea. Carrying on the Muppet legacy? Kermit taking him under his wing? It was like a dream come true. But, it still needed thinking.

"Okay." Walter said. "Let's just say I'm on the overall spectrum of most likely saying yes. But, I still need time to go through it all and just think."

"Sounds good." Gary said. "Listen, we've gotta go. But, please call us for an update."

"Oh, wait!" Mary said. "Did they catch anything on the fugitives?"

Walter and Lily exchanged a look of sadness. Today had been such a huge revelation for Walter, he barely had time to even think about that.

"No, nothing yet." Walter said, trying to hide the worry in his voice. It was silent for a moment on the other end.

"Okay, we'll be checking in." Gary said. "See ya, guys."

With that, the two couples hung up their phone call. Walter and Lily sat their for a moment.

"How's your shoulder?" She asked him, tenderly touching his taped upper arm. She loosened his shirt to uncover his bare shoulder, and he winced a bit.

"It's healing." The Muppet responded. "But, not entirely."

"Listen, why don't you read through the contract a bit? I'll get you some coffee, or something."

"Actually, can I spend the night here?" Walter asked his girlfriend. "I do want to start reading it, but I also just want stay."

Lily gave him a sweet little smile, and nodded in response. Walter smiled back.

"Okay, I'll text Kermit and just let him know." Walter said.

Lily got up to go get the coffee. She walked towards the kitchen, until there was a knock at her apartment door. That's weird. She wasn't expecting anyone. She walked towards the door, and looked through the peep hole, realizing who it was.

She opened the door, and the doorman of her building was there. He held a package.

"Mr. Clark." Lily said, happily. "Is something wrong? Did I bother the neighbours?"

"No, nothing like that." Her doorman assured her. "Actually you have a package. I would have waited for you to come downstairs and get it in the morning, but the people delivering it said it was urgent."

"The mailman didn't deliver it? Then who did?"

"I'm not sure, ma'am. But, they said it was urgent." Mr. Clark handed the package to Lily. She took it. It was small, but bulky. It wasn't very heavy, either.

"Okay, thank you Mr. Clark." Lily said. The doorman gave a tip of his hat, as he left. Lily closed the door.

She hesitated for a moment, holding the package. She would have just put it aside, and take a look at it later. But, curiosity fled over the girl. She continued to make her way to the kitchen, still getting coffee for her and Walter. She placed the package on the counter and looked at it.

"Lily?" Walter called from the living room.

"Yeah?" She called back.

"Who was at the door?"

Lily hesitated for a moment. Something was telling her she shouldn't tell Walter that she got some weird package.

"Uh, it was my doorman. Apparently there was some noise complaint." She lied.

"Oh, that's weird."

Lily merely nodded, even though Walter wouldn't have been able to see that. She further studied the package. Without thinking twice, Lily pulled out a box cutter from her kitchen drawer. Before she started to cut the tape though, she noticed a little note attached to the box.

It read:

 _The next one will be your boyfriend's._

Lily felt her heart drop. _The next one?_ She thought. _The next one of what?_

Lily began to open the back, cutting through the tape with the opener. When it was slit, she carefully opened the flaps. There was a clear white handkerchief, or some sort of cloth hiding something. She carefully took the cloth off.

She saw it, and let out a blood curdling scream.

 **Come back for the next part!**


	20. Chapter 20

Kermit and Miss Piggy got to Lily's apartment as fast as they could. The sound of Walter's panicked voice on the phone after Lily had received a horrifying package was enough for them to jump to their feet and get in the car.

The police made it over quickly, too. They studied the content that Lily had found in the box. Walter still felt the ringing in his ears from when his girlfriend let out an ear piercing scream when she looked in the delivered package.

A heart. An organ heart was in the box. Plump, and just there.

Lily sat on the couch, still trembling. Walter did all his best to comfort his girlfriend. Kermit and Piggy sat near them, also shook by the situation. The police and a medic professional studied the heart, that still remained in the box.

The medic professional took off his rubber gloves, and turned towards the others.

"Well?" The chief officer asked.

"A human heart." The medic said. "No doubt about it."

The four that sat on the couch all shook with fear. The police looked towards them.

"Lily." The head officer said. "With everything that has happened with Walter, we just wanna ask a few questions."

Lily nodded. The chief pulled out a notepad.

"Who delivered this package to you?"

"The doorman brought it." Lily responded. "He said someone brought it directly to the building."

"Did he say who?"

"No."

Walter shook his head, a bit angered. "Constantine's fugitives..." The boy mumbled under his breath. Kermit looked towards him.

"Walter." The frog plainly said, trying to keep him calm. He could sense the boy's frustration.

"There's no return address on it, boss." One of the officers said, looking at the box. "Only the note."

"Was there any recognition of the handwriting?" The chief asked Lily. She shook her head.

"Sir, this is obviously a part of the whole Constantine situation. With his goons trying to kill Walter, it would make sense."

"I'm so tired of this..." Walter said, his voice full of anger. "I don't understand why they don't just find me, instead of trying to scare us."

"They ripped someone's heart out, and said you're next..." Lily said, her voice shaky with worry. "They want to rip your heart out for goodness sake!"

Walter ran a hand through his hair. He put his elbows on his knees, and just rested in place.

"Do we know...who's it might be?" Kermit asked the police, reffering to the heart.

"We're not certain." The chief responded. "We've got others on the case right now."

"I don't understand." Walter said. "How did those goons even know where Lily's apartment is?"

"They could have seen you come here." Kermit shrugged.

"Or Lily." Piggy said. The chief looked back towards Lily.

"Did you at one point possibly walk from the Muppets' studios, back to your apartment?" The chief asked Lily. She thought about it for a moment.

"Well, a walk from there to here would be way too long." She said, quietly. "But there was that time I took the subway-"

Lily stopped when realization struck her. She remembered when she met up with Walter at one point in the morning before he had to go to the studios for work. She walked him there, and took the subway back to her apartment.

"Oh my gosh..." Lily said, putting a hand over her eyes. "They followed me home, didn't they?"

"They're waiting around the studios." The chief concluded. "Trying to get close to Walter. They must have saw you, and took the opportunity."

Walter felt his anger and anxiety just take over him. He jumped to his feet, and stormed out of the room. Kermit followed him, as did Piggy. The boy went into Lily's kitchen, fuming with anger.

"Walter." Kermit said, him and Piggy following. "I know this is bad, but you need to take a breath."

"I'm sick of all of this." Walter said. "But those guys have gone too far, now. The last thing I want them to do is bring Lily into this."

"I promise, we won't let anything happen to her."

"They hit me with a car!" Walter said, finally yelling. He looked at Piggy and Kermit with frustration. "They put me in a coma, I almost died, and now they're sending human hearts to Lily!?"

"Walter, please calm down." Piggy said, gently.

"No, the last thing I need is for them to scare Lily." Walter said. "If they want to kill me so bad, they should just pop out already AND DO IT!"

"Walter!" Kermit said, a bit angered himself. "Don't say that! Can't you see that they're getting to you? That's what they want. Don't fall for it."

Walter stayed quiet for a moment. He tried to get his anger under control. Kermit was right, they were getting in his head on purpose. He couldn't give in.

"Okay, okay..." Walter agreed. His phone then began to ring. Fozzie was calling from the other end. Walter picked it up, and put it on speaker.

"Fozzie?" Walter asked. Kermit and Piggy both put their attention towards the phone.

"Walter, how close to the police are you?" Fozzie asked. Walter arched an eyebrow, and looked towards the living room.

"Uh...pretty close." Walter said.

"Okay, because they might need to come here."

"Why? What's going on?" Kermit spoke up.

"Kermit? Wait, where are you guys?"

"We're at Lily's apartment. She got a package, and we called the police." Walter explained.

"What kind of package?" The bear asked. Walter exchanged a look with Kermit and Piggy.

"We'll...tell you later. Why do you need the police?" The boy asked.

"I got a weird letter." Fozzie said.

"From?"

"I dunno, it doesn't say."

"What's on the letter?"

"It says..." The bear drifted off.

"Fozzie?" Kermit asked, nervously.

"Hold on, I'm not done reading." Fozzie responded. Kermit sighed.

"It says...'Give us the boy, or we take his girl.'"

Walter felt his heart drop, and his arms go loose. Take his girl. They were talking about Lily.

"That's why they sent that...thing to her." Walter said. "Oh man, they're gonna take her if I don't give myself in!"

"What?" Fozzie said from the other end. "No, they can't do that!"

"Okay, nobody panic!" Kermit said. "Not now, we just need to think."

"I'll got tell the police." Piggy said, leaving the kitchen.

"Man." Fozzie said. "This really sucks to have happened the day Walter is offered heir of being Muppet leader."

"Tell me about it..." Walter mumbled.

"So what're we gonna do?" Fozzie asked. Walter looked towards Kermit, hoping for answers. He always seemed to have them when it was needed.

"I mean, I have a basic solution." Kermit said. "But, she's you girlfriend..."

Walter nodded, and thought about it for a moment. "I think, she needs to stay in hiding for a while. If the police do a major investigation, I'm sure this could get solved sooner."

Kermit nodded, as though Walter read his mind. His leadership really did remind the frog of Jim.

Just then, many of the police officers passed by the kitchen. Lily and Piggy followed behind.

"What's going on?" Kermit asked.

"They're going to go investigate Fozzie's note." Lily said. "But, we've still got some staying here looking at the...heart." Piggy and Lily continued to lead the officers to Lily's front door. Kermit and Walter were once again left alone.

"Did they just say they're coming?" Fozzie's voice asked through the phone.

"Yeah Fozzie, they're on their way." Walter said.

"Great! Could you ask them to bring a churro?" The bear asked. Even in a dark situation, Walter couldn't help but let out a chuckle. It felt good to laugh. Kermit shook his head, being use to the bear's behaviour.

"Fozzie, now's the time." Kermit said.

"Okay, just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing on opportunity." Fozzie said. "I'll see you guys later."

Fozzie hung up the phone, and Kermit and Walter both relaxed a bit. They were both tired, and overwhelmed. But, Kermit still wanted to make the best of things.

"I know this is probably a bad time. But, tomorrow we're all just going to take day to reconnect with each other at the studios. After everything that happened, I think we need it."

Walter gave a small smile, and nodded. "Okay." He said. "As long as I know Lily is safe, I'll be fine. Anything to get my mind off of this."

Kermit couldn't help but sigh with relief. "Oh, good. I thought this would end up being the same fiasco that happened before your accident."

"Nah." Walter said. "I don't need the title of being irrational. That's not who I am."

"Yeah...you've got a new title, right Muppet Boy?" Kermit joked, smirking and walking away. Walter's eyes widened.

"Hey!" Walter called back to the frog. "Yeah, yeah. Very funny."

Kermit left the kitchen, laughing.

/~/~/~/

"Hey, Walter?" Fozzie asked the young Muppet. The Muppets all sat on the floor on the stage, just talking. It's been a while since they did something like that. "Did Gary and Mary hire a band for the wedding yet?"

Walter thought about it for a moment. "No, I don't think so."

"Well, did they ever think that comedic bits from a professional might be a better alternative?" The bear asked, hopefully.

"Fozzie, it's a wedding." Scooter said. "I think they'd rather celebrate to music, not unbearable comedy."

"Maybe we could perform for the wedding." Kermit suggested to Walter. "Electric Mayhem could play."

Many of the band members nodded excitedly, waiting for Walter to answer.

"I mean, I'll have to ask. But, I'm sure they'd say yes." Walter answered.

"Yeah, y'all!" Dr. Teeth said. "We're gonna rock it, wedding style!"

Walter smiled, and relaxed a bit. It felt good to just talk with his Muppet family.

"I'll work up an agreement and suggest it to Gary and Mary." Kermit said.

"And someday," Fozzie said. "Walter will be in charge of doing that. Right, buddy?"

No one said anything. It was all of a sudden awkward. Walter didn't respond and just stayed still, uncomfortably.

"I...uh..." Fozzie tried to take his words back. "I-I mean-! That is...if you take it. But, no pressure! Heh, heh..."

The tension was really bad, it could be cut through so easily. Many looked towards Kermit hoping he would fix it. He seemed just as uncomfortable.

"I don't think it's pressure." Walter finally said. "Not if I've already agreed to do it."

All the Muppets did a double take at Walter's answer. They all felt their jaw drops. Including Kermit.

"Wait." Kermit said. "Really?" Walter nodded.

"You're gonna take it...?" Gonzo asked.

"I think I'd be crazy not to." Walter shrugged. All the Muppets immediately jumped to their feet, all running towards Walter. Gonzo was the first to reach him, and tackle him into a friendly hug. All the others came around, turning it into a big group hug. They all talked happily amongst each other.

Walter agreed to be the new heir.

"Muppets!" Someone said, interrupting the happy moment. They all turned, and saw Sam the eagle standing there. He held a telephone, that was rining. "The urgent phone is rining."

"Huh. Must be urgent." Fozzie said, pointing out the obvious. Sam put it down on a nearby prop table, and the Muppets all surrounded it. Kermit came the closest, Walter right near him.

"Hello?" Kermit answered, putting it on speaker. It was quiet for a moment.

"We want to speak to Walter..." A deep, Russian voice asked. All the Muppets felt their hearts drop. Oh no.

"You..." Walter said.

"That's right, Muppet Boy..." Another Russian man voice said.

"What do you want..." Kermit stated, rather than questioned. It was again quiet for a brief few seconds.

"We've got your girl."

The Muppets all let out silent gasps and whispers. Many looked towards Walter, who had a frozen expression on his face. He clenched his fists, and felt his heart boom inside his chest.

"You're lying..." Walter said through gritted teeth.

"Ha. Don't believe us?" One of the men said.

"...Walter..." A familiar female voice said, very quietly. Walter couldn't believe it.

"Lily?" Walter asked.

"Believe us, now?" One of the men asked.

"Let her go. This has nothing to do with her." Kermit said, trying to protect the young girl.

"Oh, but it does." The man said. "You want her, Walter? Come and see us."

"The Southwest Marine. One hour." The other said.

"We'll finally settle this face to face, Muppet Boy."

The Muppets all shuttered with fear. Walter wouldn't agree to this. There was no way.

"Okay." Walter said. "I'll see you then."

Kermit looked at Walter with shock. The other line hung up. As soon as the call was done, Walter stormed pass the rest of the Muppets. He began to walk towards the back entrance of the studios. The rest of the Muppets followed.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Kermit said, grabbing Walter's shoulder. Walter turned to look at him. "What do you think you're doing?"

"What am I doing? I'm going to stop them!" The boy said.

"You can't, they'll kill you." Kermit said. "You know that's their plan."

"I know, but what choice do I have?"

"We won't let you do this!" Piggy said.

"Yeah, let us come!" Gonzo said.

"It's too dangerous." Walter said. "I don't want them hurting you guys."

"Sorry boy, we're coming." Dr. Teeth said. Kermit walked closer to Walter.

"As soon as you became a part of this family, your problems became ours." The frog said. Walter sighed.

"I don't know..." he said, unsure.

"Come on, we have a better chance if we all go." Scooter said.

"We can call the police on the way. Rowlf suggested.

"No, they'll be expecting that." Walter said. "We can call, but they can't come with us. They'll have to find a way to sneak up."

"Okay." Kermit said. "Let's go. I've got 80s Robot on speed dial."

"No, we don't have time." Floyd said. "We'll take the band's bus."

"Come on guys. We're stopping Constantine's wrath once and for all." Kermit said, leading the way.

The Muppets all piled out of the studios from the back door. They all walked towards the Electric Mayhem bus, ready to go save Lily. Kermit and Walter were both leading the way. The frog could sense that Walter was freaking out. He was worried for his girlfriend. But, Kermit wouldn't say anything. Now wasn't the time for consolation. They just needed to get his girlfriend back.

 _I'm coming, Lily._ Walter thought to himself.

 **Come back for the next part! (I know the urgent phone part with Sam was kind of weird, but I needed a way for Kermit to put it on speaker so everyone could hear)**


	21. Chapter 21

Walter knew this wasn't gonna be easy. His heart pounded faster, the closer the Electric Mayhem bus got to the Southwest Marine. The abandoned docks that were rarely used anymore. Of course they would bring Lily there. It was isolated, and perfect if they wanted to truly kill Walter.

 _Kill Walter._ The two words slashed through the boy's mind. He had no idea what his upcoming faith was gonna be. All he knew was that no matter what happened to him, Lily and his Muppet family would be safe.

But knowing Kermit, he wouldn't let anything pass so easily. The frog wasn't only protective of all the Muppets, but had grown a specific attachment to Walter. He was the youngest of the group, and Kermit felt responsible for his safety. Though Walter wouldn't admit it, he knew Kermit felt as though he was his son. That was hard for the boy to admit to, considering he lost his dad.

His dad. It echoed in his head.

He lost his father, he wasn't gonna lose Lily too.

It was no surprise that the ride there was an uncomfortable wave of dead silence. Each and every one of the Muppets had no reason to be feeling anything else but fear for the girl. They've all grown to love her, and how happy she has made Walter. It was uncanny that the boy's eyes lit up every time she entered a room. It really was love.

And that's why they needed to get her back. For both of them.

The bus pulled up near one of the docks, and went into park. As soon as Dr. Teeth turned off the ignition, no one said anything. They all feared for Walter's life when he was in a coma, and felt that same feeling creep up again. Sick to their stomachs, and heads aching. They wouldn't let it happen. Now was the time for all of them to be brave.

"Do we all know the plan?" Kermit was the first to speak. The Muppets all nodded. Gonzo looked out the window of the bus, and saw a figure standing a few yards away.

"I see one of them." He said. Many of the Muppets shifted in place all at once.

"Is the police on their way?" Walter asked. Kermit nodded.

"Okay. Let's go." The boy said. The Muppets all began to pile out of the van. Still, no one spoke. Not in a situation like this. They made a quick plan on their way to the docks, but it was risky. Anything to keep Walter safe, but still get his girlfriend back.

They all walked towards the figure, that became more and more clear. As soon as they were close enough, they saw a gruff looking man standing before them. His eyes darted at Walter, and didn't break his gaze.

"No surprise you brought the rest of them." The man said with his deep, Russian voice. The Muppets all shivered at the same voice that had been sending them threats for the past while.

"Where is she?" Walter said, ignoring the man's scoffing. The man picked up a walkie talky, and spoke into it.

"Now, Arkady." The man said. The doors of the nearby boat house came busting open, startling the Muppets. Another one of the men came out, and he held Lily bridal style. She was tied up, but didn't look conscious at all. She was completely passed out, but her sleeping face was distressed. Clearly, she had tried to put up a fight but couldn't stand tall for long.

"What did you-" Walter was ready to march up to the men, but Kermit held him back.

"Relax, Muppet Boy." The other man, Arkady, said. "Chloroform. She's unconscious."

"Made this process a lot easier." Vitaly laughed. Walter shook with fury, and Kermit still held him back.

"Give. Her. Back." Walter said, trying not to explode.

"You know exactly what you're here for." Vitaly said. "You come with us, then we let her go. Constantine will not prevail until you are eliminated."

"And this time." Arkady added. "No silly car tricks. Not a coma to get off easy. You were lucky the first time, but now this ends."

The Muppets all inched closer, trying to keep Walter away from the men as much as possible. The boy didn't dare move, however. Not as long as his girlfriend was in the evil hands of one of Constantine's goons. If this was any plan made by the evil frog, he knew it would be deadly. So far, the Europe situation was a cake walk compared to this.

"If I go with you." Walter said. "How do I know you'll really let Lily go?"

Arkady and Vitaly exchanged a look. Arkady shifted Lily in his arms, teasingly.

"Smart boy." Vitaly said. "No wonder you're the future leader."

Kermit's hand remained on Walter's shoulder from when he held him back. His squeeze tightened at the mention of Walter's future with the Muppets. The frog remained calm though, for everyone's sake.

"Too bad you'll never see the day that Henson built on a pedestal for you." Arkady smirked.

At that moment, Kermit felt his heat drop at the mention of Jim. That was too far.

"You have no right to talk about Jim." Kermit said, a little too aggressively for his persona.

"And there's no way you're taking Walter!" Gonzo stepped up, breaking the silent fear the Muppets had been broiling in.

"W-what they said!" Fozzie said.

"Fine then." Arkady said. He lifted Lily, and tossed her unconscious body. Walter and Kermit both heavily caught her, lowering her to the ground gently. A few of the Muppets began to untie her ropes, as Miss Piggy tried to gently wake her up.

"That was easy." Fozzie chuckled.

"Not quite." Vitaly said. "Now."

Without warning, Arkady pulled out a big brown sac and threw it over Walter. He tied and slung the bag over his shoulder, Walter wrestling inside.

"Hey! Let me out you jerk!" Walter's yelling muffled through the bag. The Muppets all felt their chests go heavy, at the sight of Walter in danger.

"Animal, now!" Kermit said, panicking.

"ARGH!" Animal yelled, bolting towards Arkady. He dove onto the jail break, knocking him to the ground. Kermit went towards the bag that Walter was in, trying to untie the tight knot. Walter continued to shuffle inside.

Though the tied knot was hard to budge, it wouldn't have prepared the frog for the impact of what happened next.

"Oh, no you don't." Vitaly said, giving a hard kick to Kermit. The frog fell backwards, at haze for second. Time slowed down as he lifted his hand to hand to his face and felt the substance that creeped out of his snout. Blood.

"Kermie! Are you okay?" Piggy asked, helping him up. The frog had no time to respond when he stood up. Vitaly had already took off in the other direction with the sac that still contained Walter.

"Come on!" Scooter yelled, as him, Rowlf, Fozzie, and Gonzo bolted after Vitaly in the attempts to keep on his tail. Kermit wobbly got to his feet.

"Kermie, no. The others can-" Piggy tried to restrain him, but was no use.

"No!" Kermit yelled running off to where the other four had ran after Walter. "I lost Jim, I'm not gonna lose him too!"

"RAWR!" Animal yelled, continuing to bat at Arkady. The rest of Electric Mayhem came around, trying to restrain the prisoner.

"Get your colourful claws off me!" The Russian prisoner yelled at them. They took the ropes that were tied around Lily, and began to tie his hands. Miss Piggy went back to the young girl's aid, who began to slowly wake up.

"Lily?" Piggy asked the young lady. She held her head for support. Lily shifted slightly.

"Can you hear me? Can you say something?" The pig continued to ask. Floyd and Janice came to their aid, also attempting to wake the girl up.

"...mmh..." Lily mumbled, as her eyes slowly inched open. The light bothered her vision for a second, before taking hold of the three Muppets looking down at her. She felt relief seeing them, knowing she was no longer under the fugitives' grasp.

Her relief disappeared when she didn't spot to familiar image that was her companion.

"Where...is he...?" She asked, her head feeling worse the more she talked. Piggy exchanged a look with Floyd and Janice. The sounds of Arkady struggling from the Muppets' hold on him still motioned in the background. Though Lily was lying down and looking at them straight on, she could read the alarm on their faces.

"No..." Lily said, sitting up. They helped her into a sitting position.

"Don't worry." Piggy assured her. "Kermie and the boys went after one of them. Walter is...gonna be fine."

"I'm going with them." Lily said, trying to get to her feet.

"No." Piggy said. "We can't let you. If anything happened to you dear, Walter would never forgive himself."

The three Muppets that were at Lily's aid looked off into the direction that the villain ran off in. Lily looked into where they kept their eyes to. A part of her hoped and prayed that Walter's silhouette would form in the distance at any moment. That he would just walk up, and assure her that these criminals had been stopped.

"Miss Piggy?" Janice asked. The pig looked towards her. "Before Kermit ran off...he said he wouldn't lose Walter too..."

"Because he already lost Jim..." Floyd finished. The pig felt the inside of her chest swirl around, at the thought of the pure panic that was in her partner's voice before he ran off to go save their young friend. She rarely heard him that panicked, before.

"He'll stop them." Piggy said, thinking of Kermit. "He never let's us down."

/~/~/~/

Kermit felt his heart burn in his chest, as he kept Scooter, Gonzo, Fozzie, and Rowlf in eye shot. But, it was mainly the figure that they sprinted after that kept the frog at a rapid speed. The sight of the man with the sack slung over his shoulder, Walter still putting up a feisty fight inside.

 _Don't worry, Jim._ The frog thought. _I'll save him._

Kermit came to a sharp stop, when his four other friends were standing in a frozen state. He was ready to encourage them to keep running and stop Vitaly. Until Kermit saw the sight in front of them, too.

Vitaly stood at the edge of the dock, holding the brown sac that still contained Walter over the edge. The water was mellow down bellow, but was deeper than ever. Walter was also in the bag. One drop, and he would suffocate.

"40 feet deep." Vitaly spoke, gripping the handle of the bag. "Any sudden moves, and I drop him."

Walter still shifted in the bag, but it dialled down. The sudden silence and stillness clearly didn't go unnoticed by the boy, and he was trying to be cautious. His life was on the line, and his friends needed to choose their words very carefully.

"Please." Kermit said. "You can't do this."

Vitaly gave a bone chilling smirk, glaring at the five.

"Really?" The fugitive scoffed. "Sorry, but not sorry frog. We did not break out of the gulag, and travel to America for nothing. We will follow in on Constantine's wishes. It was his last command before being sentenced for life in prison."

The man loosened his grip on the bag.

"No!" All five Muppets said, preventing him from further loosening his grip.

"I'm telling you." Kermit said. "If you do this...you have no idea what you'll be causing."

Vitaly arched an eyebrow. "And what exactly is that?"

The frog exhaled out a heavy, shaky breath. If there was any time for a big speech, it was now.

"We love him." Kermit said. The other four didn't turn to look at him, considering showing any break of their bravery for Walter's safety might have been a risky move. They certainly didn't expect him to say that, but it was still the truth.

"Love? Ha." Vitaly ridiculed. "You don't know what you're talking about. Love isn't a recurring attachment, it's nothing but a fake feeling for fools."

"Actually." Kermit said. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"Kermit..." Scooter said, warning the frog. Anything gone wrong meant the end for Walter. They couldn't shatter the thin line of hope that was holding the boy's chances of living.

"It's okay." Kermit said. "Listen. A long time ago, we lost Jim. He wasn't...well...isn't just family, he's...a part of us. We wouldn't be together if it weren't for what he brought to this world."

Vitaly let out a brief puff of air, as mockery. "What does this nonsense have to do with your Muppet Boy?"

"Well..." Kermit continued. "I doubt you know this, but Jim died three years after Walter was born."

"So?"

Kermit swallowed. "So, the year he was born was the when Jim started to get sick. Though he didn't admit to it until the year it happened...that's when it started. I spent three years knowing things didn't look good, and kept trying to get him help."

"Get to the point, froggy."

The amphibian bit back the sadness that pounded in his chest. "When one life ends, a new one begins. Walter was put on this earth to be with us." Kermit said. "His presence in this world brings happiness to all of our hearts, and our audience. We love him for who he is. And I know with all of my heart that he's meant to carry on what Jim created. I see Jim in him, I see myself when I was young in him, and I see...my family."

Walter had completely stopped shifting in the bag. Kermit clearly caught his ear by this point.

"I see a Muppet leader." The frog finished.

The other four officially broke their gaze, and exchanged looks amongst each other. They expected Kermit to plea for Vitaly to leave Walter alone, or maybe threaten him that the police would be arriving at any moment. But like many times before, the frog surprised them.

"So, please." Kermit said. "Don't do this to Walter. Don't do this to us."

Vitaly still held Walter in the bag above the water. The Russian fugitive seemed to be in a frozen state. Kermit felt a spark of hope blossom within him. Maybe he did the impossible, maybe he got through to him.

"We all make mistakes, frog." Vitaly spoke, quietly. "Why do you think I got in prison?"

The four Muppets stayed quiet. They didn't move a muscle.

"Unfortunately." Vitaly continued. "I never really learned from my mistakes."

Without warning, the fugitive let go of the handle of the bag. The sac that contained Walter flew bellow, Walter letting out a brief yell inside. The sudden empty air that passed through him startled him, and he soon hit the water and began to sink.

"NO!" Kermit yelled, fear striking through him. Vitaly wiped a bit of sweat from his brow.

"A job done." The criminal smirked. Kermit gave an unforgiving scowl.

"Not yet." The frog said. Once again, everything passed without warning, as the frog through himself off the edge of the dock. Fozzie, Gonzo, Rowlf, and Scooter all chased after where he jumped, looking over the edge.

"Forget it, Muppets." Vitaly said. "Muppet Boy is approximately 10 feet deep by now, considering the bag is preventing him from floating. Not even your frog friend can make it after him."

Scooter adjusted his glasses. "Well, amphibians actually-"

"L.A.P.D! Freeze!" A police officer yelled, pointing a gun towards Vitaly. The criminal put his hands up, and the four Muppets felt relieved.

"Where are they?" The chief officer asked, referring to Kermit and Walter.

"Walter was in bag! A-and, he got thrown in after Kermit made this speech! And then, Kermit jumped! Chaos!" Fozzie yelled quickly, after being quiet for so long.

"What?" A female voice said, approaching. Lily came running, with Miss Piggy behind her. "No! What're we gonna do!?"

"We need a water rescue, over." The chief officer spoke into his shoulder walkie talky.

Lily and the few Muppets looked over the edge, where Kermit had jumped after Walter. The fact that no one had come up yet, gave them very little hope. They shook with grief, and feared the worse. What if Walter didn't make it? What if Kermit couldn't get him back? What if they end up losing both of them?

What if this was the end of the two leaders?

 **Oh no! The chapter ended on a cliffhanger, whoops! Make sure to come back for the next part!**


	22. Chapter 22

Everything happened faster than Walter could process. From saving Lily, to being put into a dirty sac. After Kermit had poured his words out trying to convince Vitaly to not let Walter fall into the water, Walter realized in that split few minutes how good of a family he really had.

But, it didn't resolve the panic that he felt at that very moment. He pushed and pushed from the inside of the bag, hoping he could somehow loosen the knot on the bag from the inside. But, it was a tight tie. And the water that filled up the space around him didn't make it any easier. Walter pressed his lips together firmly, trying his best to hold is breath for as long as possible. The cold feeling of the water flowing against his skin, only made him worry. He sank deeper and deeper, feeling his head hurt from the pressure. The boy's heart pounded in his chest, his mouth trembling from the impact. He couldn't hold it any longer.

Walter opened his mouth, no longer able to hold his breath. But, he knew it wouldn't help. The boy's natural instinct was to gasp for air, but it only allowed him to inhale a big mouthful of the dirty water. He coughed, trying to get it out of his system. However, it was still no use. The water quickly filled his chest, and he felt himself go extremely light headed. He felt the feeling in his hands go loose, and he couldn't put up a fight any longer.

Walter let himself sink deeper and deeper, while still trapped inside the brown heavy sac. The sunlight that reflected against the water peered into the hole stitches of the burlap sac. The boy closed his eyes, letting his body go loose.

 _I'm sorry, dad._ He thought to himself. _I'll see you in another world._

Walter felt the dark space disappear around him. The boy was sure this would be the end of him. If he still had the same mindset before he got hit by the car a week and a bit ago, he probably would have been more accepting of his faith. That was a dark peak in which being with his dad would've been the better alternative. But, he knew now that the Muppets really needed him.

And he needed the Muppets.

Walter couldn't let this happen. He tried to gain the feeling in his arms and legs, so he could keep fighting. The boy couldn't stop here. He tried to feel for the walls of the bag around him, but couldn't. Did he somehow wriggle his way out of the bag? He couldn't, the knot wouldn't budge from the inside.

He tried to look around and see where he was, but it was pitch black. Except for a little tunnel of light that was pulling him towards it.

 _No!_ Walter's thoughts boomed against the inside of his head. _No, I change my mind! I need to go back, they need me! I need them!_ Walter continued to bat around, trying to desperately look for something to grab onto. But, he was in an oblivion. There was no going back.

 _Dad, help!_ Walter tried to cry out with his thoughts. The light became to overbearing, and Walter felt himself practically break.

Everything was swept away, and Walter felt his lungs fill with air. His chest arched, as he took in a giant breath. His body gained feeling again, and he felt himself lying down on a hard rock surface. A breeze past over him, and he kept his eyes shut closed. He was worried that if he opened them, he would be dead.

"Walter?" Someone spoke. The voice sounded muffled in his ears. His hearing was blocked. Who knows who that could be.

The boy refused to open his eyes, and stayed close to the ground he lied down on.

"Walter, come on." The voice spoke, again. The young Muppet couldn't resist it. That voice was too familiar to ignore, and became more and more clear. The ringing in his ear stopped, and he tried listening for the voice again.

"...dad..." Walter tried calling out, his eyes still closed. It was silent for a moment.

"Uh, not really." They said.

Walter took another breath, and felt cold. He opened his eyes a little too quickly, the sunlight hitting his eyes like a punching bag. He tried to get them in focus until he saw two familiar figures take form. Kermit and Lily looked down at him, with some others in the back.

"You're okay..." Lily said, relief in her voice. Walter didn't respond, and instead gave them a confused look. He felt really cold, and realized that his clothes were soaking wet.

"Geez...you think getting thrown in a lake while in a bag means the end for you." Walter couldn't help but say. The few that surrounded him couldn't help but crack some smiles. The boy was still himself.

"Well, guess you thought wrong." Kermit responded. Walter sat up, looking at his wet clothes.

"How...?" Walter asked. The frog shrugged his shoulders.

"Frogs can go from four to seven hours under water without breathing." Kermit said, smartly. Instead of smiling at Kermit's comment, Walter looked at him with shock.

"You...jumped in?" Walter asked. Kermit nodded. "Are you crazy?"

Kermit shrugged his shoulders. "Have you met any of us? I think we're all pretty crazy."

"Okay, okay." The chief officer said, breaking up the moment. "Let's get this boy a towel, or something."

Walter got to his feet, with Lily's assitance. She didn't let go of his hand, as an officer lead the two of them to the back of an ambulance. Though they both felt fine, they still needed medical attention in case. When they reached the ambulance, they both sat in the back with the door opening, their feet dangling off the edge. Lily reached for a towel, and put it around her boyfriend.

"Thanks, Lil." Walter said, squeezing her hand. "Are you okay? Did they hurt you?"

Lily shook her head. "No." She assured him. "Whatever they told you, they didn't do anything. They were just trying to tease you by using me."

Walter tightened his grip on her hand. Lily noticed his tension.

"Walter." She said. "Trust me, I'm fine. They lost, its all over."

Walter looked from their intertwined hands to across the peer. A bunch of officers crowded around the two fugitives goons and forcefully pushed them into a police car. Many of the Muppets watched nearby, and Kermit talked with the chief officer. Lily was right, it was over.

"Walter?" She asked. Her boyfriend looked back at her. "There's something I need to tell you."

The young Muppet nodded, encouraging her to continue. She sighed, holding his hand with both of her's.

"Well, I got a gig." She simply said. "A movie, with Steven Spielberg."

Walter's mouth dropped open, and he couldn't help but smile.

"Oh my gosh, Lily." Walter said. "That's...that's amazing! This is gonna be your big break, I know it is!"

Instead of smiling and being excited with Walter like she usually would, Lily stayed silent. Walter noticed her behaviour, and his smile faded. She avoided her gaze with him, and he tried to catch it again.

"Lily?" He asked. "What is it? This is huge for you."

"I know it is." She said. "But, I'm not gonna do it."

Walter did a double take, hearing her say that. Lily had been none stop working on her career since she graduated from high school. This wasn't the same girl he grew up with.

"Not gonna do it?" Walter said. "Lily, are you crazy? Why not?"

Lily sighed. "Well, the movie is being filmed in New Zealand." She explained. Walter swallowed, listening to her carefully.

The girl brushed the bangs out of her face, feeling urged to continue. "If I take the job, I'd be gone for seven months."

Walter shivered a bit, as a cold breeze past over them. He adjusted the towel that was around him, not really sure how to respond.

"Well, I know that's a long way. And I know that's a long time, but come on Lily. This is your chance."

"No, Walter. I can't do it." Lily protested.

"Why not?" Walter asked.

The girl once again flicked her bangs out of her face, as the wind kept bothering her. "Because." Lily said. "I want to stay with you."

A few yards away, Kermit watched the two sit in the back of the ambulance. Scooter and Dr. Teeth came and stood by the frog, checking in on him.

"Everything okay, Kermit?" Scooter asked, looking at the couple he watched closely.

"Yeah." Kermit assured his friends. "Just hope those two are okay."

"You saved our boy, frog." Dr. Teeth said. "And those thugs were stopped, they'll be fine."

Kermit nodded. "You're right, but I've got some news." The frog said, looking at Scooter and Dr. Teeth. "I was gonna tell this earlier, until all this happened."

"What is it, is it bad?" Scooter asked.

"No, it's great." Kermit responded. "The tour is back on. For real, now."

Scooter and Dr. Teeth exchanged a look, surprised.

"For real, frog?" Dr. Teeth asked. Kermit nodded.

"Yes. And this time, we're the ones who are running it. No rigged tour this time around."

"Well, that's great!" Scooter said. "Where're we going first?"

Kermit looked back at Walter and Lily who sat in the back of the ambulance.

"Smalltown, Idaho." Kermit said. "But not for the tour, for Gary and Mary's wedding."

* * *

It took approximately three days for the Muppets to get everything prepared for their world tour. Their real world tour. Nothing rigged, or planned by an evil worker for Constantine. This time, Kermit would be running it himself. Well, with his apprentice Walter's assistance of course.

But before they could pack up the train and get a head start, they still had a wedding to attend. Gary and Mary had planned this wedding in such little time, but managed to really pull it off. They said yes to Electric Mayhem playing, of course. As long as Animal was kept under control for the sake of the wedding. But after everything they'd been through, it was pretty safe to say that Animal would be at peace for the day.

Walter adjusted his black tie, as he sat at the head table. It was late into the reception, and everyone had spread amongst the party at this point. Walter decided to take a break from celebrating his brother's new marriage, and watch everyone from a far. The bride and groom had been together all night, but took a while to split up and talk to the others. Walter spotted Mary across the room, talking to Lily and Miss Piggy. On the other end, Gary was talking to a couple of him and Walter's old friends. Including Zach and Parker. Many of the Muppets were spread around like the other guests, Electric Mayhem still rocking out.

Walter sighed, leaning back in his chair. As soon as Vitaly and Arkady were defeated, he thought that would be it. But, it wasn't. He was struggling with the fact that Lily was choosing to give up a big job to stay with him. He loved her, but couldn't help but feel guilty. A job like she was offered is a once in a lifetime opportunity, how could one say no to that? Not to forget that this is the same girl he grew up with. She's been working on her career since day one when they graduated high school. She was a natural born star.

The options were a tight fit. Keeping her here would be preventing her from taking on a huge stepping stone to her career, but they wouldn't be separated. It's not like she could go with her, Walter was a Muppet star now.

But, what would it mean letting her go?

The thoughts swirled in Walter's mind. He didn't want to let Lily go. But, he didn't what to keep her back from following her dreams. He was so distracted with the issue, he didn't even noticed Kermit come and sit near him.

"Hey, best man." Kermit said. Walter barely noticed him and looked up with a blank expression.

"Huh?" Walter said. Kermit gave him a funny look.

"I said hi?" Kermit said. Walter relaxed, and looked away. He tried getting his thoughts back, but couldn't with Kermit right there.

"Something bothering you?" Kermit asked, sensing his worry. Walter ran his hand through his hair, and sighed. Maybe it was a time for some classic Kermit advice.

"Okay." Walter started, looking at him. "Let's say, I really like something. But, I can't keep it with me all the time. This thing, she...I mean, it belongs to the world. It needs to go pursue things. But at the same time, I don't wanna lose it..."

Kermit took a second to process Walter's reason. Clearly, Walter didn't really know how to address these situations properly.

"Well for starters, I don't think you're the best at metaphors." Kermit said. Instead of laughing, Walter just continued to ponder, looking distressed. Kermit swallowed, urging to continue.

"But," the frog tried catching his gaze. "I'm guessing you're talking about Lily?"

 _Bingo_. Walter thought in his head. Kermit always seemed to know.

"Why would you need to let her go? Did you fight?" Kermit asked.

"Not, it's not like that." Walter said. "She got a movie gig."

Kermit stayed quiet, he knew he wasn't finish.

"A big one with Stephen Spielberg. But, it's in New Zealand. If she took the job, she'd be gone for seven months."

Walter didn't look directly at his leader, but could see the frog pondering to himself.

"What do you mean 'if'?" Kermit asked.

"She wants to give it up, so she can stay with me." Walter explained. "But, I just don't know if I'm okay with that."

Kermit looked from Walter to across the room. Lily still talked with Piggy and Mary. From everything Walter had said, she was really ambitious. A big star that belonged to the world. That was part of the frog's domain, so he knew things like that couldn't be held back from the world of audiences.

"Look, Walter." Kermit said, inching forward in his chair. "I'm not gonna tell you what to do for this."

Walter felt his throat become dry, and his chest drop with his hopes. "No offence Kermit, but that's kind of what I need."

"Here me out." Kermit continued. "I'll give you some advice, instead."

The boy looked back at him.

"If you really love someone, you consider what's the best situation for them and you. Even if it means things might have to end separately."

Walter pushed his gaze to Lily. She smiled and laughed with the girls she talked with. She looked beautiful tonight, in her bride's mate dress. A satin light pink, with her hair pinned back in a french twist. Walter sighed.

"Okay." The boy said, getting up. "I know what I have to do."

Walter began to unwillingly walk to the other end of the room, before being stopped.

"Walter?" Kermit said. The younger Muppet looked back at him.

"She really loves you." The frog said. Walter paused, but then nodded as reassurance. He continued to walk towards Lily at the other end. When he got there, Piggy and Mary were the first to notice. They didn't say anything though when they saw the nervous look on the boy's face. Walter tapped Lily on her shoulder, and she turned around. Her eyes lit up when she saw her boyfriend.

"Hey!" She said. "Where have you been?"

Walter shrugged his shoulders. "Just...catching up with the others. Do you wanna get some air?"

Lily nodded, and began to walk with Walter outside.


	23. Chapter 23

**This is the final chapter! Make sure to read my note at the end :)**

"Quite the wedding, huh?" Lily said, as her and Walter stood outside from the reception. It was a chilly night, and Lily shivered from the wind that passed over her, while in her sleeveless dress. Walter took the blazer of his tux off and put around her. She smiled, warmly.

"So, best man." She started. "You're awfully quiet, tonight."

Walter grabbed hold of the knot of his tie, loosening it. He cleared his throat, and brushed his hair out of his face.

"Lily." The boy began. "You know I love you, right?"

Lily gently put her hand on Walter's. It was cold, but soft. Walter felt her lean her head in between his and his shoulder, her hair prickling against his neck.

"Of course." She said. "Honey, is something wrong?" Walter nodded his head, accidentally getting a strong scent of Lily's perfume.

"What is it? Are you worried about the contract?"

That was a whole other subject. Though Walter had agreed to carry on the Muppets when he was older, he still had yet to actually sign in agreement. Kermit gave him the contract the day he told him. It currently sat folded neatly in his blazer pocket, which was still around Lily.

"No, it's not that." Walter said, taking her shoulders and holding her in front of him. He looked directly into her eyes, and saw that they had changed. She always knew something was wrong when Walter acted distant.

"Lily." Walter said. "You need to take that job."

The girl couldn't help but let out a sigh of annoyance. Clearly, this was a subject she had been trying to avoid. But, Walter could see right past her. She wasn't happy to give it up.

"Walter, we talked about this." Lily said.

"No we didn't." Walter protested. Lily shot him a look.

"Don't you realize?" Lily said, taking his hands off her shoulders and holding them. "If I take it, we'd be separated."

Walter let go of her hands and leaned against the stone fence, peering at the garden that was bellow them.

"You don't think I know that?" Walter mumbled, bitterly. Lily put her hand on his shoulder.

"So, what's the problem?"

Walter ran his hand through his hair, letting out a sigh. "Lily, remember senior year of high school? You got that gig for that local musical for kids. Though it wasn't even close to the big times, you belted your heart out either way."

Walter didn't see Lily blush behind him. Instead, she put her arms around his waste, resting her chin on his shoulder.

"You know what I thought when you did that?" Walter said. "I knew you were meant for this world. This is a girl who has talent, passion, ambition. Someone who you can't find anywhere else. A star."

Lily tightened her grip on Walter.

"Lily, I never knew it when I was younger. I was just an idiot boy when growing up, who didn't know how to handle his feelings. But I really have always loved you. Since the day that moving truck pulled in onto our block and I met that five year old girl with messy pigtails."

Lily let out a shaky breath, her chin pressing into his shoulder. "I've always loved you, too..."

Walter sniffed a bit, trying to control himself. "That's why, you need to go."

Lily's arms loosened from Walter. The boy turned around, once again looking at her. Her face was stained with a few escaped tears.

"No, Walter, no." She said, holding his hands again.

"Lily." Walter said, squeezing her hands. "Look me in the eye and tell me this job with Spielberg isn't what you've been dreaming of since day one."

The girl let another shaky breath. "It...It is. It is Walter, I want this, but I want you more." She broke her gaze by looking down, but Walter immediately lifted it to look at him again.

"Are you really sure about that?" The young Muppet questioned. Lily hesitated, swallowing back another shaky sigh.

"I...I don't know." She admitted.

The boy carefully brushed a loose piece of her fallen bangs out of her face.

"You have to do this." Walter said. "I've got a whole other life the Muppets now. _The_ life with them. We both have our ways, Lil."

"But, what does that mean about...us?" Lily asked, innocence in her voice. Walter didn't say anything, and continued to gaze into her teary eyes. His look said enough.

"It wouldn't last for seven months..." Lily concluded. Walter was the one to shed a tear, this time.

"No." He said, very quietly. "I don't think it can."

Lily pulled Walter into a hug, and they both stood there. Walter carefully grazed his hand against her back.

"So if I go to New Zealand..." Lily whispered. "That's the end for us."

Walter shrugged his shoulders. "I-I don't really like endings, so...maybe it's just a new beginning."

Lily nodded. "I like that." Her voice was shaky, but truthful.

"And hey." Walter said, pulling back from the hug. "If you're ever in L.A., single, I'll be there."

Lily let out a small, brief laugh. She wiped her eyes. "For sure. Unless you've managed to sweep up a good looking girl on your Muppet tour. You've sure got the looks for it."

Walter chuckled. "I don't think so, but thanks."

Lily then took Walter's blazer off, pulling out the contract from the pocket. She pulled out a pen as well, clicking it. She handed both to Walter. The boy looked at her in wonder.

"You've got a very bright future ahead of you, Muppet Boy." Lily said. "Stop waiting."

Walter stayed still for a brief moment, but then nodded solemnly. He took the contract and pen, unfolding the paper. He signed his name in agreement.

/~/~/~/

"Flight 53, now boarding. Flight 53." The intercom said. Lily and Walter both sat outside the gate for Lily's flight in the airport. The girl looked towards her childhood friend.

"That's me." Lily said to Walter. The boy nodded, and they both got up from their seats. Lily slung her carry on back pack over her shoulder.

"You loaded the rest of your luggage, right?" Walter asked.

Lily couldn't help but laugh. "Yes, you asked me three times in security."

As soon as they reached the flight's door, Lily hesitated, holding her passport and ticket in hand. She turned towards Walter.

"Call me when you land, okay?" Walter said. Lily nodded.

"Will do." She said. "I hope your first show goes good on your tour, Muppet Boy."

Walter smiled warmly. He held her hands, squeezing them. The boy let out a shaky breath, and Lily's face softened.

"Hey..." She said, gently. The girl cupped his face with her hand. "This isn't goodbye. We both separated for college, right? It's not that different."

"Yeah, but..." Walter said. "It's not like we were in an exclusive relationship then. We were just friends during that time."

Lily pursed her lips a bit. He was taken this harder than ever.

"Well," she said. "This may be an ending to something...amazing, but remember that I've always had, and always will love you."

Walter couldn't help it. He took her hand off his face, and pulled her into a kiss. She kissed back, none of them wanting to let go. They both held one another close.

"Oh, wait." Lily said, separating from her embrace. She unzipped the front pocket of her back pack and pulled something out. "For your new wallet."

Walter carefully took the little glossy paper that Lily held. He looked at it, and caught his breath when he saw it was a new version of the same little photo of his father that Animal had accidentally ripped up weeks ago.

"Lily-"

"Turn it over."

Walter did as he was told, and saw a little message written on the back.

It read:

 _He's always there._

Walter looked up at Lily. He held the photo, lost for words.

"I know it's not the message that your dad gave, but...he's still there, Walter. That photo wasn't all you had left of him, _you're_ what there is left of him."

Walter carefully put the photo in his pocket. "Thanks, Lil."

"Last call for Flight 53. Flight 53, last call." The intercom said once again. Lily looked from the door, where the flight attendant impatiently waited for Lily to come with her passport and ticket. Lily looked back at Walter.

"Go." Walter said. "Be the star you're meant to be. Oh, and post some pictures of New Zealand."

Lily couldn't help but laugh. "I will. As long as you go and be that Muppet leader you were meant to be."

Walter nodded, holding her hand.

"You coming, ma'am?" The flight attendant asked.

"Yes." Lily said. She turned to Walter and quickly gave him a peck on the cheek. She then went towards the attendant, her hand slipping from Walter's. As soon as the attendant looked at her ticket and passport, Lily stood in the door of the gate. She stood there, until the door was closed completely, and neither one of them were looking at each other face to face anymore.

"Bye, Lily." Walter whispered to her, even though she was no longer there. He stood there for what felt like seconds, but was actually minutes. He rubbed his fingers lightly together, still feeling where Lily had let go of his hand.

A tear left Walter's eye, just like Lily had left him.

Just then, Walter felt someone nudge him. It felt like a head nudge, and then he heard the familiar heavy breathing. The red unkept hair, drummer Muppet himself. Walter turned to look at Animal, and was surprised to see a bunch of the Muppets there.

Walter quickly rubbed the tear away with his sleeve. "If you're here to say something consoling, I'd really rather not right now..."

Instead of anyone saying anything, Animal hugged Walter. The drummer still breathed heavily like he always did. Walter stood there awkwardly in his hug, but not for long, as all the other Muppets came and turned it into a group hug. Kermit was the last to join, knowing he'd have to at least say something.

"We won't.." The frog said. Their hug said it all.

No one saw, but Walter blushed from his family's affection.

/~/~/~/

"Is everything loaded?" Kermit asked, as the Muppets frantically ran around the train station, loading the Muppet train for the tour. Walter stood still in place, as Piggy and Fozzie looked from his dad's photo, to him. Piggy held it in her gloved hoof, in awe by the resemblance between the young Muppet and his father.

"Walter has anyone ever told you you look so much like your father?" Piggy asked, still holding the glossy paper. Walter nodded.

"More than enough times, ma'am." Walter said, addressing her jokingly. Kermit tried hiding his snickers nearby, but still looked at his clipboard. Miss Piggy shot a look to Walter.

"Watch it, young man." She said, passing him the photo and continuing to walk. She pulled out her compact mirror, to check her hair. A man came by with a trolley of luggage, following her.

"Piggy, again, do you need so much luggage?" Kermit asked. Piggy closed the compact mirror, and nodded.

"Of course, Kermie. I think we'll be having full-seated audiences every where we go, now that the news is out about Walter being the future Muppet leader."

"She's right." Scooter said, approaching. "The ticket sales all boosted up, and I think that's the reason why."

"That might mean we'll be swarmed with paparazzi." Kermit said, holding his clipboard.

"At least we've got new security." Walter said, stepping in. They looked towards Animal, who ran by.

"Chicken!" Animal yelled, chasing after Camilla. Gonzo ran behind.

"PUKAAAK!" Camilla yelled, fearful.

"Stay away from her!" Gonzo warned Animal, as they raced past the others. They all shivered from Animal's anger.

"Okay, can someone get Animal doughnut before he really loses it?" Kermit asked.

"Got it." Scooter said, walking away. Fozzie followed the stage manager in hopes for a doughnut, too. The Muppets all did a last minute check of everything, and began to pile onto the train.

"So, uh." Rowlf came to Walter, as they walked towards the train. "Any hopes for chatting up with some European girls? I think I could be of assistance."

Walter chuckled, and shook his head. "I think I'll be okay, thanks."

"Well, I'll be there when you're ready for it." Rowlf said. Walter smiled, glad to be surrounded by his friends. "But, listen. There is actually something you should know."

Walter felt worried. "Oh no, what could it possibly be now? I thought we were done with these problems."

Rowlf put his hand on his shoulder. "No, it's nothing like that buddy." Rowlf explained. "It's about Kermit."

"What about Kermit?"

Rowlf looked towards the frog. He was busy talking to a few other Muppets about loading the train. The dog looked back at Walter.

"Look, I've known Kermit for a long time now." Rowlf explained. "Besides his relationship with Miss Piggy, or the connection he had with Jim, I've never seen him try hard to keep someone protected."

Walter felt as though he understood, but played dumbfounded instead. "What do you mean?"

"I mean," Rowlf continued. "Kermit cares about you. He's never had a son, and you're probably the closest thing he's got. If he seemed sort of controlling of your relationship with Lily, it was only because he was trying to protect you."

Walter felt his heart drop. He looked from Rowlf to the frog who was still occupied.

"I know no one could ever replace your dad, boy." Rowlf said. "But, Kermit wants to do anything to be your family."

And with that, the dog left Walter to himself. The boy stood there for a few moments, trying to process what Rowlf had just piled on to him. Kermit thought of him as...a son? Or at least, what was close enough to it. Walter had to resist himself from fainting. The fan-like part of him couldn't help but feel more flattered that his childhood hero sawhim as that. But now that Kermit was his friend and not just an icon, he felt the real feelings of family. Not just feelings of looking at someone on a screen.

"Okay, everyone! We've got a long way ahead of us, let's go!" Kermit said. All the Muppets began to pile onto the train.

Walter and Kermit were the last to get on, entering by a small single opened door on the train. Walter's phone buzzed in his back pocket, and he pulled it out. He got a text from Gary.

It read:

 _Good luck on your REAL tour, buddy_

Walter formed another smile, and texted his brother back.

 _Thanks. Have a good honeymoon, and say hi to the Mrs. for me :)_

The young Muppet put his phone away, and looked towards the bright sun peering into the train station. It was still early, the sun had just come up. He thought about Lily. What she was doing, if she had met Stephen Spielberg yet, and if it was everything she ever dreamed of.

His thoughts were disrupted when a hand went on his shoulder. Kermit stood by him, looking off where the boy was looking.

"You okay?" Kermit asked. Walter usually would've shrugged it off with a yes, but he was done trying to be closed up.

"Yea. I'll be fine." Walter assured him. Kermit nodded.

"Good, because we've got a lot of tracks ahead of us. And I'm not just talking about the tour."

"Oh, yeah." Walter said, thinking about his agreed apprenticeship with Kermit. The boy pulled out the signed contract, and handed it to Kermit.

"Hey." Kermit said, taking it. "You finally signed it."

"Yeah." Walter nodded. "With a helpful push from Lily."

Kermit carefully folded the contract. He took a second to think about the girl that had helped them along the way.

"She's gonna make it big."

"Obviously."

Walter turned his gaze from the sun to Kermit.

"I know you weren't the biggest fan of our relationship, but thanks for being supportive." Walter said. Kermit's smile faded.

"What? What makes you think that?" The frog asked. Walter couldn't help but give him a look.

"No offence Kermit, but I didn't get the impression that Lily was your favourite."

"No, no, no." The frog assured him. "It wasn't Lily. I think it was just a matter of...timing. That was when I was making the plans to ask you to be my trainee, so you getting in a serious relationship was just hard to keep up with when I needed your attention."

Walter arched an eyebrow. "You sure it wasn't...overprotection?" The younger Muppet saw as his leader's eyes grew a bit wider. Kermit broke his gaze, and rubbed the back of his head with his hand.

"Rowlf told me." Walter explained. "And...I agree." The frog looked back at him.

"You do?" He asked. Walter nodded.

"I don't think I'd be the same if I didn't meet you."

Kermit took a second to process. "Neither would I."

They were disrupted when a loud noise came from inside the train. Animal continued to chase Camilla with Gonzo following behind.

"PUKAAAK!" Camilla yelled, desperately.

Walter and Kermit couldn't help but snicker a bit.

"Jim would've loved seeing all this." Kermit said. Just then, a breeze past over the two. Walter watched as the sun shined brighter, the sky lighting up more with it's morning blue colour.

"I think he does." Walter said. Kermit nodded, as the train horn went off. The train began to slowly take off, with Walter still standing on the platform. Kermit reached out his hand for Walter to grab on. The boy accepted, and hoisted himself onto the train.

"Ready for the tour of a lifetime?" Kermit asked his apprentice. Walter looked off into the sunlight, it shined so bright. He could practically see his father, and Jim looking towards them. The young Muppet smiled to himself. Walter was where he belonged.

"Let's see the world, boss."

The end.

/~/~/~/

 **omg, I cannot believe this is actually the end. 0_0 I knew this story was gonna be long, but I can't believe I managed to make to 22 chapters. I really hope you enjoyed reading, your reviews honestly made me so happy! And for those of you who might be disappointed that Lily and Walter didn't end up being a lovey dovey couple in the end, the whole point was to show that they both had places in the world where they were meant to be. Walter was meant to be a Muppet star, and Lily went off to do her own celebrity work. And also, as much as I love Lily, I wanted this story to focus more on Walter himself. Mainly, the bonds he had with his father when he was younger, and the bonds he made with Kermit as a new fatherly-like figure. But of course, Lily and Walter will always love one another, like they had throughout their childhood. And if it's meant to be, they'd find a way to get back to each other. But again, this story was about Walter. So, I really hope you enjoyed it, and place rate and review! Thanks so much for reading. :)**


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